


That Which Holds Us

by whitebear_ofthe_watertribe



Series: A Brand New Dawn [3]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Action, Action & Romance, Action/Adventure, Aged-Up Character(s), Alternate Universe - College/University, Angst, College, Domestic Fluff, F/M, Family Secrets, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Friendship, Friendship/Love, Identity Reveal, Miraculous History, Mystery, Original Character(s), Plot, Post-Reveal Adrien Agreste/Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Reveal, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-10-04
Updated: 2018-04-04
Packaged: 2019-01-08 21:11:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 22,290
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12262170
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/whitebear_ofthe_watertribe/pseuds/whitebear_ofthe_watertribe
Summary: It’s been several months since Ladybug and Chat Noir discovered their true identities. Now that they aren’t trapped by secrets, they can finally be their full selves around each other and have never been closer. Marinette is going into her final year at university, Adrien is exploring new classes and passions, and their friends Alya and Nino seem to be moving towards a happy future together. It all feels like things couldn’t be better.But of course, nothing in life is quite so perfect.When Adrien starts having vivid nightmares and visions about his mother, old questions begin to resurface. Will he be able to find the answers, or will these ghosts from the past tear apart the heroes of Paris for good?





	1. Chapter 1

The late August sun beat down upon Paris from a brilliant, cloudless sky. The city was full of bustling noises as its inhabitants tried to take advantage of the last days of Summer. Cars drove with the windows rolled down, blasting upbeat music as they passed. Hordes of people explored the many kiosks and vendors, strolled along the river banks, and flew kites in the refreshing breeze that blew through the parks and along the busy streets.

Alya sat perched at a small round patio table by one of the open-front bistros just off campus. The computer before her displayed the latest article she’d been commissioned to write, and her overflowing notebook and third coffee of the day rested beside it. She tapped her pen on the paper impatiently, trying and failing to find the right words to fill the introduction. Letting out a sigh, she set the pen down and reached up to nudge her glasses up her forehead. Pressing her fingers against her eyelids, she enjoyed the cool wind that played across the back of her neck, momentarily dispelling the day’s heat.

As she sat there, Alya began taking in some of the chatter of the people surrounding her. A couple of women walking along the sidewalk were gabbing about a dinner party they were planning for the following evening. A little girl was asking her uncle questions at a neighboring table as he seemed to be patiently trying to teach her the rules of chess; Alya smiled as the girl used her own names for each of the pieces, including “Princess Pony” and calling the pawns “prunes.”

An irritated voice caught Alya’s attention, and she curiously peaked through her fingers to see a man around her own age standing in line for the bistro’s counter, clearly in a heated phone discussion.

“No, Mother… Mother I’m _fine…_ No, I’m not moving back home. School’s starting and… Yes, I understand you’re worried, but like I told you last week, I _like_ my job. I mean I’m honestly used to the Akumas at this point! _Everyone_ is!”

 _‘Ah_ ,’ thought Alya, suddenly realizing what was going on. It was a familiar discussion that she’d heard a dozen times over the past several months. A number of people she went to school with had already left the city in favor of transferring to places where the threat of supervillain attack was a bit less common.

For the people of Paris who’d lived with it for nearly a decade, the Akuma attacks had sort of become standard news. Sure, there were still plenty of people who experienced a thrill of fear every time they heard some bangs and explosions in the distance. However, most folks planned the risk of attack into their daily schedule, much like one would make a habit of leaving their house early to account for rush hour traffic. And when friends or family called to check in, it was not unusual to hear them insisting that their loved ones move out of the city and away from the chaos, or at the very least, ask for updates about the escapades of their favorite super heroes and villain.

Alya had always considered herself pretty good at keeping a cool head during attacks; after all, she’d been directly involved in enough of them. She’d had a deep love for superheroes ever since she was little, and the excitement she got from running straight into the heart of battles for footage of Ladybug and Chat Noir always overshadowed any fears she might’ve had.

It wasn’t really until Puppet Master’s attack in January, when Marinette had been so badly injured, that she finally started to see these attacks as truly dangerous. And it seemed as though the rest of the city was of the same mind. The people of Paris had been rallying behind their heroes ever since the incident with a new intensity that she had never seen before. To see that their beloved heroes where not perfectly infallible – that they couldn’t always set everything back to normal after every attack – made them realize that there was actual risk involved.

There had even been a lot of anger towards the city’s law enforcement and politicians for not doing more to bring this villain to justice. A new chief of police had been appointed, replacing the father of Alya’s old schoolmate, Sabrina Raincomprix. From what she could tell, this new guy – Chief Thomas Benoit – had actually been extremely helpful to Ladybug and Chat Noir during some of the recent attacks. He’d often done amazing jobs getting civilians to safety so that the heroes could focus on taking care of the Akumas. He’d even contacted Alya about her old Ladyblog, asking for her permission to use it as a civilian hotline and a resource in tracking down Hawkmoth himself. The Ladyblog was more popular than it had been in years as people tried to take matters into their own hands and bring the villain to justice.

A soft _ding_ from her computer’s speakers brought Alya out of her contemplation. Pulling her hands away from her face and repositioning her glasses, she grimaced as she shifted to unstick her thighs from the wooden seat. As much as she loved the Summer months, she was _really_ ready for some cool Autumn weather. The notification in the right corner of her screen told her that Adrien had just sent her a large folder. Clicking on it, her mouth drew into a smile as she was met with a page full of picture thumbnails from their camping trip several days prior.

Adrien had spent a week and a half earlier that Summer in the American Rocky Mountains, participating in a photo campaign for the _prAna_ company. He’d joined a small team that climbed a handful of the 14ers closest to the city of Denver. On his return home, he arrived with a huge assortment of backpacking gear for himself and Marinette, and enthusiastically insisted that the four of them go out for a camping weekend before school started up again.

Nino and Alya were no strangers to hiking adventures, as they enjoyed traveling regularly for both of their jobs, and there was no better way to see a new place than to walk it. By the end of that weekend, though, it was clear that Marinette was a city girl through and through; while she kept a good face about sleeping in tents, carrying heavy loads, and doing business in the woods, all of them could see how relieved she was to be back in urban civilization.

As Alya clicked through the pictures, her smile grew. Adrien had done amazing work photographing their trip, capturing stunning shots of the wilderness and wildlife they encountered, sprinkled with plenty of excellent shots of the four of them. Of course, no small number of pictures featured Marinette as their focus. Alya snorted affectionately as she clicked through several in a row of Marinette blushing furiously and laughing as she tried to snatch Adrien’s camera away from him.

Her two friends had become next to inseparable in the past months. Alya had the sneaking suspicion that the near-death incident, as horrible as it was, had caused Marinette to finally break out of her comfort zone and take the next step in her relationship with Adrien. ‘ _Well, at least_ one _good thing came of that horrible time,’_ Alya thought. She and Nino were beyond thrilled about this turn of events; it had been something they’d all be waiting for ever since their years in middle school.

“And speaking of waiting…” Alya muttered under her breath as her eyes flicked down to the clock on her computer screen. Her friends should have already arrived to join her at the restaurant for lunch a few minutes ago. Frowning slightly, Alya reached under her chair to grab the phone from her purse, preparing to message Nino.

She was halfway through typing out her text when a flash of movement outside the patio gate caught her eye. Alya looked up to find Nino and Adrien hurrying up the path between tables, looking gently frazzled.

“It’s about time!” Alya called, waving them over. “What’s going on with you two? You look like you’ve just seen –”

“An Akuma?” Nino offered, coming over to her as Adrien looked around. “Well, you’re not wrong.”

“Really?” Alya raised her eyebrows, quickly closing her computer and feeling more awake now than she had from any of her three coffees.

“An attack just started a couple blocks down,” Adrien confirmed. “Where’s Marinette?”

“She hasn’t shown up yet,” Alya replied, shoving her stuff into her bag and leaving payment for her coffee on the table as they made their way for the gate. Adrien craned his neck to peer up and down the street when they got to the sidewalk. Alya could hear distant screams and what sounded like a man shouting something she couldn’t quite make out.

“I should go look for her,” Adrien said, turning to face Alya and Nino.

Nino smirked at him, nodding in agreement. “Give us a call when you find her, kay?”

Alya quickly pulled out her phone, opening up her camera and turning on the spot to try and see where exactly the battle was taking place. The commotion sounded like it was getting closer.

“We’ll meet up here when all of this is over, kay?” Adrien called, starting to head off down the street in the opposite direction of the noise.

Nino nodded. “See you in a –”

_“LOOK OUT!”_

There was a loud humming noise and flash of bright red. Suddenly, Alya’s breath was knocked out of her. A sharp pain in her shoulder told her that she’d just been knocked against the restaurant’s stone siding. Nino had his arms wrapped protectively around her. Looking over his shoulder, she saw Adrien was nowhere to be found. She caught a glimpse of Ladybug swinging around the corner at the end of the block. It looked like she was carrying someone, but before Alya could get a better look, she heard a strained grunt come from Nino. Quickly she pushed him off her and placed her hands on his cheeks to see where he was injured.

“Babe! Are you ok–” The words died on her tongue as she took a better look at him. It was as if time had been set on fast-forward; where one moment Nino stood there looking perfectly ordinary, the next his hair had turned grey, and he’d grown a bushy beard to match. Wrinkles framed his amber eyes as he looked back at her, worry streaking across his face when he saw her surprise.

“What? What’s happened?!” He exclaimed, his voice coming out a little deeper and hoarser than before.

“Well, I guess this means we know what the Akuma’s powers are.” Alya ran her fingers through his silver hair, and Nino frowned at her.

“What are you talking – ” Nino stopped dead, staring at his reflection in the window beside her, and then let out a yelp as his hands flew to his face. “WHAT THE HELL?!”

“Hun, calm down. You look fine!” Alya fought hard against the laugh that threatened to burst out, pressing a hand to her lips as she watched her boyfriend closely inspect his new, sagely features.

“I look like my _grandfather.”_

“Yes,” Alya snorted, unlocking her phone and opening the camera once again as she hurried down the street towards the sounds of the battle. “Well, haven’t you always said that you wanted to grow up to be as suave as him?”

“I mean I expected it to happen over the course of _decades,_ not _seconds!”_ replied Nino irritably as he finally turned away from his reflection to hurry after her.

“Don’t worry babe, you still rock a beard better than anyone!” Alya shot over her shoulder. “Oh, by the way…” She spun on her heel and raised her phone up to him. When the sounds of the camera shutter went off, Nino scowled.

 _“Why?”_ he grumbled.

“For the Ladyblog!” Alya said brightly, turning around to continue running. “And for your Mom. You _know_ she’s gonna get a huge kick out of this!”

* * *

 

Adrien felt a great lurching in his stomach, and opened his eyes to find himself soaring through the air. Looking around, he discovered that he’d been flung over Ladybug’s shoulder, and she had an arm wrapped securely around his waist. She used her yo-yo to swing around a building’s corner and up onto the rooftops of a block of department stores. He smiled affectionately at the back of his head, realizing that she’d just saved him from an Akuma’s attack just so that he could be sure to fight by her side.

“Sorry to snatch you up like that!” Ladybug called to him. “But we’ve got a monster to stop!”

Coming to a halt, Ladybug made to set him down, but Adrien grinned devilishly and wrapped his arms around her neck so that she had no choice but to hold him up with one hand under his knees and the other supporting his shoulders. He beamed up at her, and she raised an eyebrow.

“Adrien, what are you –”

“Wooow, Ladybug!” Adrien gushed, fluttering his eyes at her. “You saved me! You’re so _cool_ and _strong…”_

“Oh for the love of –” Ladybug rolled her eyes and let her arms drop down. With a _whoomph_ Adrien sprawled at her feet, flinching to keep his exposed skin from touching the hot tiles of the roof. He let out a bark of laughter as he saw her cheeks take on a shade of red that had nothing to do with the sunburn she’d gotten that weekend while camping, which had barely started to fade.

“Wait, nooo!” Adrien reached out to her playfully. “You’re my hero, Ladybug! You’re so _pretty_ and _brave_ and _awesome_ and –”

“And ready to smack you if you keep this up.” Ladybug cut him off, but he could hear the amusement in his girlfriend’s voice as she stepped over him and out of his reach. “Just transform, you idiot cat.”

“As M’lady commands,” Adrien said, smirking as Plagg emerged from his pocket to hover between the two of them.

“Do you two have to be stupid and lovey-dovey _every single time?”_ he wined.

“Excuse me?” Ladybug scoffed, looking over her shoulder and putting her hands on her hips as Adrien sat up and rested his arms on his knees. _“I’m_ the one trying to act like a professional over here!”

“Seriously?” Plagg drawled. _“You’re_ the one who didn’t have to save the idiot cat’s ass in the first place.”

“He’s got a point,” Adrien nodded stoically. “I mean it’s almost like…” He let out a theatrical gasp, his hands flying to his cheeks. “Does the beloved heroine of Paris _like_ me?!”

Ladybug rolled her eyes again and turned back to him. She opened her mouth to retort, but her words were drowned out by a shout of alarm from below. Forcibly reminded why they were on the rooftop in the first place, Adrien leapt to his feet and cried, “Plagg, _transforme moi!”_

Plagg’s final muttering of _“Idiots”_ faded with the burst of green light that momentarily flooded the rooftop, and suddenly Chat Noir stood beside his Lady, flashing her his usual Cheshire grin.

“So, Bugaboo, what exactly are we dealing with?”

“Well…” Ladybug peered over the building’s ledge, and Chat followed her gaze to see a tall, elderly man in a tweed patterned suit and homburg hat walking purposefully along the street. He held a polished wooden cane in his hand, and Chat’s ears picked up the sharp _crack_ it made with the his every step. For all the world, this man could have simply been enjoying an afternoon strole in the sunshine, except for the fact that his skin was as pale white as parchment paper, and nearly as translucent.

Before either of them could move, the Akuma caught sight of a couple young men hurrying away from him. There was a loud _hum_ and Chat felt a sort of static pulse shoot through the air as the Akuma spun his cane and brought it against the ground.

_CRACK._

Chat Noir gasped as he saw that the two young men suddenly weren’t so young anymore.

“This’ll teach you!” the Akuma cried. “This’ll teach ALL of you! You can’t just throw the Sage away so easily just because of old age! Not when _everyone_ _else_ is old too!”

“From what I can tell, this guy didn’t get a promotion or something because he’s a bit older,” Ladybug said beside him, and Chat looked down at her as she tapped her chin thoughtfully. “If I were to guess, I’d say the Akuma is inside the cane. Thoughts?”

“Makes sense to me,” Chat nodded as she glanced up at him. “That _does_ look like where his power seems to be coming from. Do you have a plan yet?”

“You go low, I go high?” Ladybug suggested.

“Come from behind? I’ll keep his attention,” Chat Noir offered, shooting her a wink before they both dove in opposite directions. Chat lithely made his way down the side of the building to land on all fours in the middle of the street, several yards from the Sage. He noticed a few civilians peeking out from behinds the shop windows on either side of the street. “Aren’t you a little old to be acting so childish?” Chat called, standing up and rolling his shoulders. “I mean I know they say ‘act the age you feel’ but this seems a little counter intuitive, dontchya think?”

The Sage turned to face him fully. “I am really, _really_ tired of children telling me what to do,” he growled, the grip on his cane tightening.

“Um, wow? Rude.” Chat scoffed dramatically, catching a glimpse of his Lady making her way along the roof behind the Akuma. She was holding what seemed to be a large, elaborate kite. He assumed that must be her Lucky Charm. “I mean, I think I should get a _little_ more credit for the fact that I know how to file my own taxes, thank you very much.”

Before the Akuma could retort, Ladybug flew off the roof. Holding the kite above her head, she brought it down with a cry of “Take that!” and effectively trapped his arms between the fabric and string. The moment she landed, however, the Sage twirled the cane between his fingers and caught her ankle in its hook. Ladybug let out a yelp of surprise and tumbled to the ground several feet away.

Chat hurried towards her, calling “You ok?”

“Chat Noir, the Akuma!” she cried, glancing up.

Chat spun to see the Akuma throwing the kite trap to the side. He began to swing his cane over his head, and a _hum_ filled the air again. Chat let out a battle cry and launched himself forward. The Sage turned to follow him, trying to direct his attack, but in a fluid motion, Chat flipped into the air, soaring right over the top of the Sage’s head and snatching the cane out of his hands before landing lightly beside Ladybug.

“A gift for you, M’lady,” Chat said, offering her a hand and helping her to her feet.

“Aw!” Ladybug gushed, taking the cane with a dazzling smile. “You shouldn’t have, Kitty! It’s not even my birthday.”

“Anything for you my dear,” Chat swept into a low bow as Ladybug raised the cane high and brought it down onto her knee, splitting it in half with a loud _crack._ As she caught up the dark butterfly and quickly restored the world to its former normalcy, Chat turned and made his way over to the old man sitting on the ground where the Akuma had just stood, looking around in confusion before spotting the superheroes. A look of understanding flashed across his face.

“I didn’t mean to get so upset,” the man said sadly as Chat helped him stand up. “I was just… angry. The company I helped build said they wanted to replace me with someone younger, and I guess I just…”

“I’m so sorry,” Chat said gently. “It’s not right that they were prepared to just get rid of you like that after all the work you’ve put in to get your company where it is today. Is there any way you could still participate in how things are run?”

The man looked at him thoughtfully before shrugging. “Eh, we’ll see what happens. I’m sure my wife would be thrilled to have me finally considering retirement.”

“I hope you can find a way to transition on good terms,” Chat offered kindly. “Don’t let them bully you into anything, yeah?”

Chuckling, the old man offered Chat a hand and he shook it. “You know, you’re alright young sir. Thank you for helping me out of that villainous darkness.”

“My pleasure, Monsieur. Good luck.”

Ladybug appeared by his shoulder and offered the man his un-Akumatized walking cane, which he took gratefully before turning to go.

“Everything ok?” she asked, looking between the two of them.

“Yeah,” Chat said. “I wish we could help more, sometimes.”

“I know what you mean,” Ladybug said, putting a hand on his shoulder. “But we can’t solve _everyone’s_ problems.”

Just as he heard her earrings give off their tell-tale beep, a small flood of news reporters appeared and quickly approached them with cameras and notepads in hand. A jumble of questions reached Chat Noir’s ears, but before he could open his moth to respond, Ladybug had stepped forward to address them.

“Sorry to be rude,” she said kindly but firmly. “But we really must be going!”

The two of them hurried off, launching into the air and soaring over the crowd until they found a secluded corner a couple blocks away. Detransforming, Adrien looked around to see Marinette catching Tikki out of midair. The angry lines of her sunburn were made even more apparent under her navy sundress. Where her spotted suit had hidden the worst of it, these thin straps did not.

“Well, at least _that_ was easy,” he said fanning himself in the heat, and she shrugged.

“Almost too easy,” she muttered, pulling her phone out of her pocket to check the time. “Crap, we totally missed our lunch window. Have you seen Nino and Alya yet?”

“Yeah, they were going to try and get some footage of the fight last I knew.” Adrien rummaged in his pockets for some cheese, as Plagg was looking at him pointedly.

“Did they say where to meet up?” Tikki asked over the bit of pastry Marinette had just fished out for her. “There’s still a few minutes before you guys have to head back to work.”

“They should be back at the restaurant,” Adrien nodded. Taking Marinette’s hand, they hurried out onto the street which was once more filled with people going about their business. They wove their way down the block, and rounding the last corner, they heard a familiar voice calling their names. Looking around, he saw Alya waving them over to where she and Nino stood waiting.

“Are you guys ok?” Nino asked, giving them a sweeping look, searching for injuries.

“We’re fine,” Marinette smiled. “I just had to save Adrien’s butt from getting blasted by the Akuma, but other than that…”

“Oh please, you’re the one who fell over.” Adrien exchanged an amused glance with her before turning back to their friends. “Did you get any good footage for the Ladyblog?”

“Ohoho, I did better than _that.”_ Alya pulled her phone out and Nino let out a huff beside her as she flipped through it to a particular image, holding it out proudly for Adrien and Marinette to see.

“Wait… is _that…?!”_ Marinette gasped and Adrien burst out laughing.

“Man! You got blasted?”

“Ha ha ha,” Nino rolled his eyes, crossing his arms indignantly, but Adrien could tell he too was fighting to hide a smile.

“Alya, _please_ send that to me,” Adrien demanded, grinning as he pulled out his own phone. “This is absolutely going to be your new caller ID picture.”

“Done!”

 _“Dude!?”_ Nino exclaimed.

“Don’t fight it, babe,” Alya patted Nino gently on the arm. “Do you guys still have any time left to grab a bite?”

“No, I’m sorry,” Marinette wrapped her arms around Alya’s neck apologetically. “I really need to get back to the bakery. The afternoon rush is probably just starting.”

“Shall we raincheck, then?” Nino suggested. “We can figure something out for tomorrow?”

“Sounds good to me,” Marinette smiled, quickly giving both Alya and Nino a peck on the cheek before taking Adrien’s hand. “We’ll have more time to catch up then, anyways. See you!”

They waved goodbye, and Adrien gave her hand an affectionate squeeze as they headed off in the direction of the Dupain-Cheng bakery.

“How long do you work tonight?” he asked, and she shrugged.

“I’m closing.”

“Didn’t you open this morning?” Adrien raised his eyebrows.

“Yeah,” she sighed. “ _And_ I closed last night too.”

“Isn’t that a bit much?”

Marinette shrugged again. “That’s what my parents said too. I’m just trying to get in as many hours as I can before school starts, you know?”

“I guess,” Adrien looked at her sideways. “But you look kinda tired. Are you sure you’re not pushing it too hard? I’m pretty sure they expect you to go back to school _rested.”_

“It’s fine,” Marinette grinned up at him. They paused at the top of a set of stairs leading down to the underground subway system. “Although I think I’m going to skip patrol tonight, if that’s ok?”

“That’s fine, Bugaboo. Are we still going to Master Fu’s tomorrow?”

“Yeah of course,” she nodded. “I have a new shirt for him.”

“Tropical?”

“Always.”

Adrien leaned down to give her a quick kiss. “Be sure to get some good sleep tonight, kay?”

“I’ll text you later,” Marinette said, giving his hand a squeeze goodbye as she turned to go. Adrien watched her walk away for a moment, admiring the sun reflecting off her dark hair, making it look exceptionally blue for a moment. He smiled to himself before heading down the stairs to find the train that would take him back to his office.

The remainder of Adrien’s afternoon was filled with video calls and meetings. By the end of the day, he was thoroughly tired of work. He’d barely gotten to see his friends that afternoon, and he’d been counting on spending a little more time with Marinette than just taking down yet another villain.

He stayed late into the evening, though, enjoying how quite the building got when the day lights had been turned down and most of the people had left. He cherished times like this when he could actually finish things up without interruption.

The moment he left his office, his feet made up his mind for him. He climbed up a few flights of stairs until he emerged onto the roof.

The night sky was lit up with the orangey glow of the city. A warm breeze ruffled his hair as he breathed in the delicious smell coming from a nearby restaurant. Plagg flew out from Adrien’s shirt pocket and perched on his shoulder.

“So, we’re going to the girls’ place, huh?” he inquired, and Adrien grinned down at him.

“I think the city can survive without a patrol for one night.”

Plagg gave a little whoop of enthusiasm, spiraling off Adrien’s shoulder to loop happily through the air. “Beautiful cheese, here I come!”

Adrien laughed, amused at how much his catty Kwami had grown to love Marinette, as much as he’d tried to hide it with the excuse of loving the cheese she always had stashed and ready. He rolled his shoulders, before taking a running leap off the ledge. In a burst of light, he landed as Chat Noir on a neighboring building and sprinted off in the direction of Marinette and Alya’s apartment, his tail fluttering out behind him.

It only took him several minutes to launch his way over the busy roadways and loud street corners full of people enjoying the pleasant evening. Even though the air was cooling off with the absence of the afternoon’s blazing sun, by the time he flipped onto the building across from their apartment, he was feeling uncomfortably hot.

Pausing for a moment, he carefully observed his destination through the living room windows; Alya was pacing in the kitchen, her phone held between her cheek and shoulder while her hands were occupied with a spoon and a pint of ice cream. She let out a laugh, and from what Chat’s sharp ears could pick up, she was talking to Nino. He smiled as his eyes slid over to Marinette’s window, which sat open to let in the night air.

She was standing in front of her mirror wearing only some sleep shorts and a sports bra, twisting her arms around uncomfortably to try and reach her back. Chat tilted his head in confusion until he noticed the bottle of Aloe Vera laying open on top of the bureau beside her, and suddenly understood what she was trying to do.

Springing across the street, he soared easily through her window. As his boots hit her wooden floor, Marinette let out a yelp and jumped back in surprise.

 _“What the– ?!”_ she exclaimed loudly, stumbling into her bureau with a loud _crash._ Chat was before her in a swift, fluid movement, one hand catching her around her waist to stop her fall, the other pressed over her mouth.

“Shh!” he hissed, grinning. “Alya is still in the kitchen!”

“Mar?” came Alya’s voice through the door. “Is everything ok?”

Chat widened his eyes imploringly. _“Is_ everything ok, Princess?” he whispered.

Marinette reached up to pull his hand away from her face with a huff, though he was pleased to notice that she held onto it, weaving her fingers between his almost unthinkingly.

“I’m good!” Marinette called out. “Just tripped. No worries!”

“Ok, goodnight Ms. Clumsy!”

 Chat noticed the kitchen light shining through the crack under in Marinette’s turn off.

“Goodnight,” Marinette said distractedly over her shoulder, before turning back to him. “What are you doing here?” she asked softly, raising her eyebrows.

“I missed you,” he shrugged.

Marinette let out a dramatic gasp. “Does this mean the beloved hero of Paris _likes_ me?!” she said, making fun his words from earlier.

Chat was only half successful in stifling his laughter. Dropping his transformation, Plagg appeared to hover in the air beside them, looking rather expectantly at Marinette.

“Hello Plagg,” Marinette smirked, glancing sideways at him. “Let me guess.” Stepping away from Adrien, she reached for the insulated lunchbox that held a permanent place on her bookshelf.

“Hello!” came another familiar voice, and Adrien turned around to see Tikki perched on one of Marinette’s bedposts, happily munching on a cookie that was easily twice her size and already halfway gone.

“How’s it going, Tikki?” Adrien grinned reaching over to give her an affectionate pet on the top of her head with his thumb.

“Great,” she chirped. “Marinette was just talking about how she wished she could’ve seen you more today, too.”

“Was she, now?” Adrien turned to look at her, feeling thoroughly pleased at his decision to come over.

Marinette turned towards him away from Plagg, who was already filling his cheeks full of a rather odiferous cheese.

“Yeah, yeah, so I missed you too.”

She returned his smile, and he reached out to cup her cheek again, this time leaning in to brush his mouth against hers. He felt her hum happily against him, but as he trailed his hands gently over her shoulders, she broke away and hissed in pain.

“I’m so sorry!” Adrien threw his hands up in alarm. “I totally forgot!”

“No, no!” Marinette gave him an apologetic look, grabbing his hands and holding them tightly. “You’re totally fine!”

“I guess this means minimal cuddling still, huh?”

“Correct,” Marinette said, moving gingerly back in front of the mirror and grabbing the Aloe bottle again. “I’m just glad these burns are finally starting to get better.”

Adrien thought her use of the term “get better” must be very loose in this situation. The lines where her normal, pale skin met the deep red of sunburn still stood out in high contrast. And now it looked even worse than before, as the damaged areas were beginning to blister and peel. He really, truly felt sorry for her. Despite their best efforts to be responsible with the sunblock during their camping trip, they had spent their last afternoon playing in a river, which must’ve washed a lot of it off. But where his, Alya’s, and Nino’s sunburns had already faded into healthy tans, Marinette it seemed would only every transition between the tones of “porcelain” and “cooked lobster,” as Nino had put it. None of their burns even hurt anymore, really. It was only poor Marinette who was stuck with the worst of it.

“I just can’t – reach – this – one – spot!” Marinette tried and failed once again to reach at an allusive point on her back with her fingers covered in the soothing gel. Adrien chuckled, reaching out to push her arms down.

“Don’t worry, I got your back.”

Marinette gave him a grateful smile, and moved away from her mirror over to her desk. As Adrien quickly stripped out of his work clothes down to a t-shirt and boxers, she switched on a small fan near her window. It slowly started to rotate, pulling the cooler air from outside into the warm room. Adrien sighed in relief, enjoying how the temperature was already beginning to drop.

Tikki and Plagg bid them goodnight (well, mostly Tikki, as Plagg was still stuffing his mouth with cheese) and flew up to the top of Marinette’s tall bookcase. She had set up a sort of mini pillow fort in the space between the bookcase and the ceiling; it was their Kwami’s favorite place to hide away and get some privacy.

Marinette climbed onto her bed and slumped face down on the mattress, letting out a tired sigh.

“Busy day, huh?” Adrien asked, moving to sit cross-legged beside her and putting a dollop of Aloe on his hands.

“Yep.” Marinette grunted her voice muffled through the pillow before turning her head to look at him. “I’ve been helping Mom and Dad train the new kid.” She yawned hugely, and Adrien could tell that she was fading fast now that she’d lain down.

“Edmund, right?” Adrien gently traced the skin of her back with the lotion, feeling how much heat the burn areas were giving off and trying his best to be delicate. “How’s that going?”

“Mmm,” she sighed, reaching out for his free hand and gently tracing the cat tattoo on his forearm, her eyes closing lazily. “It’s going fine. He’s a fast learner, and seems to do really well with the customers.”

“Do your parents like him?” he asked, smiling as her warm fingers left tingles on his skin.

“Yeah. I think my Dad is a little disappointed that I won’t be around to help with the decorations as much,” Marinette sighed. “But I’m sure they’ll train him up for all that in no time.”

Adrien reached out to put the lotion bottle on the desk, and turned off her lamp light. Stretching out his legs, he laid down on his side facing her.

“I have a hunch that he’s more disappointed that you’re going to be so wrapped up in your final school year that you won’t have as much time to work with them.”

“Hmm,” Marinette mumbled. “How ‘bout you? How was your day?”

“Eh, fine I guess. The usual. I got all the pictures from our trip edited.”

“I saw those. I wanna hang some of them up.”

“I’ll get you some prints this week.”

“Mmm. Good.” Her breathing was already slowing to a soft rhythm.

After a moment, Adrien was sure she was fully asleep. He grinned as he watched her in the soft street light that came in through her curtains, moving his fingers to deftly pull a soft strand of hair from her face and tuck it behind her ear.

“I love you,” he whispered, and closing his eyes, he too let himself drift gently out of consciousness.

_He was in some sort of room. He could barely make out the walls in the darkness. There was no hint of a door or windows. Just endless walls and corners, trapping him in a box. He trailed his hands frantically along the paneling, turning this way and that._

_There had to be a way out._

_There had to be a way to escape._

_And he only knew, with absolute certainty, that he_ had to _escape._

_In a desperate attempt, he threw his shoulder against one of the walls. He’d rip apart a hole with his bare hands if that’s what it took. Again and again and again, he beat at the dark material. Yes, there! The sounds of splintering wood met his ears. It was working!_

_“Adrien, my love.”_

_Adrien froze, his heart jumping into his throat. He knew that voice. He hadn’t heard it in nearly a decade, but there was no way he could ever forget. Slowly, hardly daring to believe it, he turned around. There, standing in the middle of the room, illuminated by a strange blue light, was his Mother._

_“Mom?”_

_“Adrien, you can hear me?” Her eyes softened as she smiled and raised her arms, welcoming him in. “Oh honey, I’ve missed you so much.”_

_Adrien ran towards her, stretching his hand out in front of him, trying desperately to reach her. But she never moved closer. As hard as he tried, his feet were not carrying him across the room. He sprinted with all his might, but she only seemed to be moving further away._

_“Mom!” he cried, his voice feeling raw in his throat. “Mom wait!”_

_“I love you,” she whispered._

_“Mom please don’t go! Don’t leave me!"_

_Suddenly, Adrien’s foot landed on nothingness and he lurched forward. There was no floor. He was falling, down, down, down into the endless darkness._

_“I love you, my son.”_

Adrien woke up with a gasp, his eyes blowing wide to take in Marinette’s dark room. The fan that sat on her desk slowly turned to blow a soft breeze in his direction. Beside him, Marinette slept on, her breathing steady, and her lips puckered as she squashed her cheek into her pillow.

Carefully, so as not to wake her, Adrien pushed off the mattress and came to a sitting position, running his hand through his hair. He realized he was trembling. His heart was still pounding from the dream he’d been having moments before. He frowned trying to recall more clearly what had been weaving through his mind.

“It happened again, didn’t it?”

Adrien looked up to just barely make out Plagg peering over the top of the bookshelf at him, his slitted eyes reflecting the soft golden glow from the lights beyond the window.

Ever since their battle with the Puppet Master, Adrien and Plagg had shared the residual effects of absorbing the Akuma’s dark energy. Things had gotten much better over time, especially when they both could spend more time with Marinette and Tikki. But it was not unusual for them to get a violent nightmare every now and then. And when that happened, linked as he and Plagg were, they would always feel that darkness swirling around each other. It was a burden they shared, but because they were in it together they could at least offer the other understanding and solidarity.

Adrien frowned. The dream he’d had was far from the normal night terrors. Usually they had something to do with Hawkmoth or some monstrous Akuma. But this dream had been no Akuma, so why…?

 _‘It’s the anniversary,’_ he thought suddenly. They were approaching the anniversary of when his Mother disappeared from his life nearly a decade ago. He’d had dreams about her before, whenever this time of year came around. He supposed it was just another one like those before, but he still didn’t understand why Plagg would have sensed anything when it was simply a dream about his Mother…

“What time is it?” Adrien whispered, looking around for Marinette’s clock.

“A couple hours till dawn.”

“Is Tikki asleep?” Adrien whispered.

“Yeah.” Plagg floated down from the shelf to hover beside him.

“Good. Let’s let them rest. I need to run for a bit. _Transforme moi.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome to the official sequel of 'A Brand New Dawn'!!! You guys, I've been planning this story for about a year now, and let me tell you I am SO FREAKIN EXCITED to finally begin sharing it with you!
> 
> Now, if it's not quite clear, TWHU takes place between Chapters 12 and 13 of ABND. I really wanted to have fun exploring our dorks' relationship while it was still a bit new during that missing year, plus there's a lot I wanted to address regarding... *ahem* other things in the Miraculous universe ;}
> 
> As far as this fic goes, I currently have a whopping 16 pages of this story outlined chapter-by-chapter, with several different conclusions I have yet to decide on (but as with ABND, I'm pretty sure the right ending will present itself as I work through the story) so we'll see how that goes. I will try and update fairly regularly, but there's this pesky thing called a "day job" that I am pouring most of my energy into, as well as commissions and other aspects of a busy life, so please forgive any hiatus-type moments in advance! Just know that I'm fully committed to sharing this whole story, and with some much appreciated patience from you all, TWHU will get done eventually!!!
> 
> Thank you everyone who supported ABND and took the time to send in comments! Without you guys, I never would've gotten this far! This one is for you <3


	2. Chapter 2

Marinette leaned against the cool ceramic of her bathroom sink, picking gingerly at the flaking skin along her shoulders. The spattering of freckles along her arms stood out darker than usual against the angry red burns. Biting her lip, she removed a satisfyingly large bit and enjoyed the momentary relief from the itching that had plagued her since the blistering began. Her eyes wandered to the reflection of the clock that hung on the wall behind her. She and Adrien were to be at Master Fu’s for afternoon tea in half an hour.

For years, they had all made it a sort of tradition to meet up once a month for afternoon tea and discuss the Miraculous lore, as Master Fu deciphered the pages of the Miraculous Compendium he’d scanned so long ago. It took a while, as many parts of it were written in all sorts of languages. Originally, Marinette and Adrien had met with Master Fu individually. But since they learned each other’s identities, they had combined these meetings to include everyone.

Adrien had texted her earlier about picking her up to walk over there together once he got off work. Marinette unlocked her phone to look at his message for the dozenth time that day. There was nothing strange about the message itself, but she still frowned down at it in frustration.

She had awoken in the early hours of the morning to find the sheets beside her empty and cool, with Adrien and Plagg nowhere to be found. It wasn’t exactly unusual for them to disappear like that. It only bothered her because she felt she knew the reason why.

In the beginning months of their relationship, Adrien had often woken up in a panic from the violent nightmares. She’d done her best to comfort him and reassure him that all was well. She also hoped that these sorts of nights would fade over time, but while they did become more infrequent, her partner never seemed to be free of them.

After a while, Adrien simply stopped waking her up, trying to pretend that it didn’t happen anymore. But in the mornings that followed, it only took one look and she could tell when he hid the truth. And though she argued that she wanted to be there for him, he would just calmly insist that she didn’t need to lose sleep too.

Sighing, Marinette glanced down to share a knowing look with Tikki, who swam leisurely back and forth through the water pooled in the basin, held there by a rubber stopper blocking the drain.

“And Plagg didn’t wake you up either?” she asked. Tikki shook her head.

“I’ve always hated how stubborn he can be when it comes to things like this.”

Marinette nodded, swirling her fingers through the water. Tikki floated in a slow circle in their wake. Turning and stretching her arms above her head, Marinette winced a little at the pinching of her sensitive red skin, but otherwise ignored the pain. Wandering into her bedroom, she pondered what might have brought the nightmares on this time. She had begun to work out a sort of pattern; whenever Adrien was particularly exhausted or had spent a long day dealing with his father, a bad night was almost guaranteed to follow.

Though of course when she’d finally proposed this theory to him, he’d only smiled wearily and told her once again to not worry so much.

Stooping down to pull a pair of shorts and a loose t-shirt out of a drawer, she changed out of her pajamas and threw her hair up into a simple knot. Going back into her bathroom, she glanced at the clock again and pulled the stopper out of her sink, pausing briefly to enjoy how Tikki spun around with the water as it whirled down the drain.

Shaking off some droplets, Tikki soared into the air to alight on top of Marinette’s head.

“Are you going to talk to him about it?” she asked.

“You know I am,” Marinette shrugged. “He has to wear down and talk about it eventually, right?”

Tikki patted her head, but otherwise made no response. Marinette bit her lip, guessing at the doubt that was running through Tikki’s mind. After all, she was trying to ignore those same thoughts herself.

A knock at the front door pulled her out of her contemplation. Grabbing her bag and a wrapped package for Master Fu, Marinette quickly shut off all the lights and moved through the apartment to peer out the peephole.

“Wow, using the front door like an actual civilized human this time?” she teased as she opened it to reveal Adrien standing in the hall, his hands in the pockets of his shorts. Plagg was hanging from a pair of sunglasses tucked into Adrien’s shirt collar, his tiny cat tale twitching with amusement at Marinette’s quip.

“I figured having Chat Noir show up outside your window in broad daylight might make your neighbors a little suspicious,” Adrien said, grinning as he moved back to give her room to step out of the apartment and lock the door. She turned to face him and he bent down to pull her into a hug, softly pressing his mouth to hers before they made their way towards the staircase. Plagg let go of Adrien’s glasses, soaring down to join Tikki in Marinette’s bag.

As they exited the building into the blazing sunlight and turned up the street, Marinette looked sideways up at Adrien, noting the dark circles under his eyes. Swiftly, she raised her hand and used her fingers to give him a hard _flick_ on the side of his forehead.

“Ouch!” Adrien jerked away from her, giving her an indignant look and rubbed at the spot she’d hit. “What was _that_ for?!”

Marinette crossed her arms as she continued to walk, her lips pursed. “You know exactly what that was for. When are you gonna stop pretending that you’re not still getting those dreams?”

 Adrien shoved his hands back into his pockets and matched her pace. She saw his jaw tighten stubbornly.

“It’s nothing.”

“No, it’s definitely _not_ nothing.”

“Marinette, _please_ stop worrying about that.”

“No!” Marinette huffed, frowning up at him. He was trying to avoid her gaze. Plagg and Tikki looked between the two of them from below. “Adrien, would you stop trying so hard to carry the whole world on your shoulders all the time? We’re partners, we are supposed to be doing that together, remember?”

“I’m not dealing with it on my own–”

“Oh, so you and Plagg are just going to keep suffering together in silence, right?” Marinette glanced down to her side, and saw Plagg’s expression turn sulky. “No offence, but that’s not exactly ‘dealing’ with it.”

Adrien sighed heavily and glanced over at her.

“Mar, listen. I really appreciate you caring about me and Plagg like this. I’m not kidding!” he continued hurriedly, as she raised her eyebrows doubtfully. “I mean, both of us really are comforted by the fact that you and Tikki want to help us so bad. It’s just…”

“Yeah?” Marinette prompted softly, and Adrien let out another sigh.

“I don’t know how to make them stop. And reliving them in the day doesn’t really help anything either.” They made their way down a set of concrete stairs into the subway tunnels, where the temperature was pleasantly cooler away from the sun. The Kwamis ducked out of sight as the crowds grew more dense. Adrien unconsciously tucked her hand into his out of habit, and pulled her off to the side, a little ways away from the group of people clustered on the main platform waiting for the next train. He bent down a little towards her, his voice low. “If there was some way to make them go away, you know I’d come to you for help first thing. But it seems like this is something that may only go away over time, if ever. And I don’t want to spend any more energy or emotion on them than I have to. I just want to keep living life normally, you know?”

Marinette bit her lip, looking up at him with worry.

“I don’t like it when you’re hurting, though. I want to be able to help you.”

“I know,” he said, smiling down at her. Releasing her hand, he pulled her into him, and she wrapped her arms around his waist tightly. As he rested his cheek on top of her head, she enjoyed breathing in his familiar warm scent. “You do help me, though, you know? Just to know you is a gift, and spending all my time with you that I can helps more than you could ever know.”

Grinning, Marinette tucked her face further into his chest.

“Yeah, I kinda like being around you too, I guess,” she said, her voice muffled. She felt Adrien’s soft laugh vibrate through her.

They stood like this a few moments more before a silver train came whooshing into the tunnel. They made their way onto the last car, and embraced again as the doors closed. Adrien held onto a steadying rail with one arm, and held her close with the other.

Marinette stared out the back window, watching the tracks disappear without really seeing them as her mind ran over what Adrien had said. Her desire to help him and Plagg had not lessened, but she understood him not wanting to relive the nightmares. And he did have a point; as of yet, there was nothing she could think of to help make the dreams actually stop.

Unsure of what to do, and angry that she didn’t have the solution to Adrien’s problems, Marinette turned her head to gaze up at his face. Standing on her tiptoes and reaching her arms up around his neck, she pulled him into a gentle kiss.  Adrien returned it, smiling, before pulling away a little to rest his forehead against hers. Marinette looked into his familiar green eyes, watching a mixture of emotions play out in them.

“I love you, _Chaton_ ,” she murmured.

“I love you too, Bugaboo.”

Their journey to Master Fu’s went quickly. It wasn’t long before they found themselves standing outside his door. Adrien knocked while Marinette fanned herself with her hand, feeling sweaty from the sultry weather. The door clicked open to reveal Wayzz hovering at eye level, a wide smile on his tiny green face as he regarded them.

“Welcome friends!” he said happily, laughing when Tikki and Plagg zoomed out of Marinette’s bag into the room.

“How are you today, Wayzz?” Marinette asked as she and Adrien followed their Kwamis inside, where it was pleasantly cooler.

“Very well,” he declared, closing the door behind them. “I’ve always liked warm Summer weather like this, you know.”

Marinette nodded, remembering well how much he had always expressed his love for the season. Wayzz quickly joined Tikki and Plagg as they soared around the room, giggling and chatting in a language she couldn’t understand. This was standard behavior; the Kwamis tended to keep to themselves when they were all gathered, preferring to let their Chosen learn more about matters regarding the Miraculous on their own, and only joining the conversation when they absolutely had to.

“Where’s Master Fu?” Adrien asked, seating himself upon one of the floor cushions beside the low table.

“I am here,” came a familiar voice from the kitchen. Master Fu came around the corner, smiling and holding a tray with a steaming teapot and three cups. He set them on the table next to the plate of cookies and the large binder full of scanned pages from the Miraculous Compendium. “I trust the two of you have been well?”

“Well enough,” Marinette said, walking forward and holding out her present to him. “For you, Monsieur.”

“Oh how kind!” he exclaimed, grinning wider. Unwrapping it, he let out a pleased laugh. “You know me well, my dear.” He held up the tropical shirt to his shoulders, looking down at the bright swirls of turquoise and deep sea greens. 

“Ooh! I like this one!” said Wayzz, landing on his Chosen’s shoulder and admiring the material.

“It does bear some resemblance to you, doesn’t it?” Master Fu said. Wayzz nodded, pleased, before jumping into the air again to continue chasing the other two Kwamis around.

Marinette giggled as she sat down beside Adrien. Master Fu folded the shirt affectionately and set it on top of one of the antique side tables beside the door to his kitchen before seating himself across from them.

“So, how was the camping trip?”

“Really fun!” Adrien exclaimed, before correcting himself. “Well, mostly. Marinette isn’t really one for wilderness.”

“It was _fine_ ,” Marinette said, rolling her eyes but giving him an honest smile nonetheless. “I’m just not as into backpacking as the rest of you. Plus, I could’ve done without being so badly burned.”

Adrien nodded sympathetically.

“I hear you two have been busy with more than just your Summer Vacations, though,” Master Fu said, dividing the steaming tea into the three cups.

“I guess you could say that,” Adrien nodded, reaching out to take one of the cookies. “The Akuma yesterday wasn’t too bad though. We actually had a pretty easy time of it.”

“Yeah, a little _too_ easy,” Marinette said. Master Fu regarded her curiously.

“What makes you say that?”

Marinette shrugged, taking a sip of tea and enjoying the minty sensation that ran down her throat. For a hot drink in such warm weather, it was oddly refreshing. “I mean that the last few times we’ve had to fight an Akuma, it’s hardly been any effort at all.”

“Do you think it’s because you’ve been improving your skills as a team? And that things seem much easier now than they did before?” Master Fu asked, sipping at his own tea and watching Tikki swoop down to gather an armful of cookies to bring back to the ornate gramophone where Plagg and Wayzz sat waiting, and where Marinette knew the other Miraculous gems were hidden.

Shaking her head, Marinette looked from Master Fu to Adrien. “No, I mean that it really has been _too easy_. Like there was that whole stretch of time after the Puppet Master’s attack last Winter where there wasn’t even an Akuma. For _months!_ And then this Summer we’ve had a few more regular Akumas, but they were all… well, easy.”

Adrien’s brow furrowed.

“You know, you’ve got a point,” he said. “Like we’ve always had a weird mixture of Akumas, and some were definitely more dangerous and formidable than others… but yeah, the ones we’ve taken down lately were just sort of… _blah.”_

“It’s almost like… like Hawkmoth doesn’t really have his heart in it lately, you know?” Marinette said, leaning forward insistently. “Like maybe after all these years of trying to get our Miraculous, the fire has gone out of his fight.”

“That may be,” Master Fu nodded. “But I find it interesting that he would have chosen now of all times to throw in the towel, as it were.”

“I mean do you think there is anything that could have made him stop being so into his fight?” Marinette asked.

Adrien let out a huff beside her, and when she turned to him she was surprised to find that his expression had grown dark.

“It’s like you said, isn’t it?” He hunched his shoulders in a protective manner and started leafing through the scanned pages of the Miraculous Compendium distractedly. “The last major Akuma he sent our way was Mathis. It was the worst attack to date. Maybe he was shaken up by the fact that he actually succeeded in putting someone in the hospital. Of course, that would mean assuming that monster has some sense of remorse.”

His voice had and edge to it. Marinette felt her heart clench in her chest. Glancing at Master Fu who nodded in understanding, she moved closer to put her arm around Adrien. He had landed on a page depicting the Peacock Miraculous. It showed a woman brandishing a pair of bladed fans, with a pale blue veil covering her nose and mouth. Beside her was a large image of a jeweled hairpin. Adrien was staring down at the illustrations blankly. Reaching out and tracing the lines and colors with her fingers, she whispered softly to him.

“The nightmares aren’t real.”

Adrien’s jaw clenched. Closing his eyes, he took in a long, deep breath, then turned to look at her. His expression softened and he nodded gratefully.

“I’m sorry,” he said, addressing everyone in the room. From the gramophone, Plagg shot a meaningful look up at him, but said nothing.

Marinette gave Adrien a slight tug and he straightened up a little again. She kept her arm wrapped around his, though, and softly traced his tattoo as she had done with the drawing of the Peacock Miraculous.

“We cannot know for sure whether Hawkmoth has lost interest in his battle for your Miraculous,” Master Fu continued as though there had been no pause in their discussion. “There are any number of possibilities for why he did not bother to attack for so long, as well as for why he might be sending only sub-par Akumas forth to do his dirty work.”

“I just wish we were closer to knowing his true identity,” Marinette said, resting an elbow on the table and propping her chin on her hand. “We’ve been chasing his minions around for ages now, and we are still nowhere near finding out more about him.”

“Everything happens in its own time,” Master Fu said sagely.

The three of them spoke for quite a while longer, moving on to less pressing matters. Adrien and Marinette elaborated on their backpacking tales, showing Master Fu all the pictures. The Kwamis continued to do their own thing, playing and chatting and soaring around their Chosen’s heads.

Several cups of tea later, and Marinette deemed they should head out if they were to pick up treats from her family’s bakery before going to Adrien’s apartment where they would meet Nino and Alya.

“I look forward to our next tea time, young heroes,” Master Fu said with a smile as he hugged them both goodbye.

“Absolutely,” Marinette said, laughing a little as Wayzz swooped in to give her cheek and affectionate hug. “Until next time!”

Plagg and Tikki made themselves comfortable in Marinette’s purse once again. As the door closed behind them and they made their way down the hall, she laced her fingers with Adrien’s and looked up at him.

“Hey,” she said, nudging him a little in the side.

“Hm?” he murmured, leading her into the early evening air. Enormous clouds towered above the city in an azure sky, glowing brilliant pinks and orange in the light from the setting sun.

“You ok, kitty?” she asked. Adrien looked down at her, and his expression told her he knew exactly what she was referring to.

“Yeah,” he sighed, giving her a gentle smile. “I’m just looking forward to the evening with our friends.”

“… Mhmm,” she said after a moment, allowing him this change in topic, though not entirely convinced as they moved in the direction of her parent’s place.

* * *

 

“No! NO! Absolutely NOT!” Alya shrieked.

Nino chanced a glance away from the TV to find her rigidly hunched over the controller in her hands, a crazed look in her eyes as she actually snarled. Her knuckles were white as she rapidly pounded the buttons. Turning his eyes back to the screen, Nino bit his lip in an effort to smother his laugh.

It had been a long time since he’d first introduced Alya to _Crystalcore,_ a first-person shooter game that they usually played live. She’d been curious when she discovered that he, Adrien, and Marinette all enjoyed it, and he’d enthusiastically invited her to join their team when the four of them were hanging out one night. They’d all been very excited, taking things slow and trying to help show her the ropes. After a few trials like this though, one thing became very apparent; Alya totally _sucked_ at _Crystalcore_.

It wasn’t like she was horrible at all the other games he’d shown her. They would often have fun enjoying a lazy afternoon playing different things, after all. But there was just something about combat games and Alya that did not click. And throw in the heightened unpredictability that came with playing _Crystalcore_ live? Well, that situation had “disaster” written all over it.

“Son of a –!” Alya exclaimed as she was killed for the dozenth time that evening. The tension in her body was released as she slumped back, defeated, against the coffee table that sat in the middle of Nino and Adrien’s living room.

Nino couldn’t help it this time. He let out a laugh that quickly earned him a smack on his arm.

“We can play something else, you know,” he suggested, keeping his eyes trained forward.

John and Antoine – a couple buddies from his band – were connected and playing as his and Alya’s teammates at John’s house. He’d just witnessed John getting taken out by the enemy member he was presently stalking, and could hear him complaining about it over the headset he wore.

“I’m _not_ going to concede defeat,” Alya grumbled, pushing her own headset down to sit on her neck. “And it’s not my fault this time anyways. It’s that same guy from last time who keeps singling me out as an _easy target.”_ She raised her hands to put air quotations around the last two words.

“I mean, can you blame him?” he teased, and she smacked him again. “Hey it’s _fine_. You don’t have to be the best at everything, babe. We were bound to find something that’s just not your thing sooner or later.”

“Yeah, yeah. Just hurry up and win this round so I can get back in.”

“Aaand… done.” Nino turned away from the menu screen that appeared as the mission concluded, having just taken out their last opponent with the help of Antoine. Despite Alya’s less-than-stellar gaming, they were still doing fairly well. They had been playing against one particular team all evening, and were tied neck and neck.

 Sitting up, he wrapped his arm around Alya’s propped up knee and leaned against her affectionately. “Aren’t the love birds supposed to be here already?”

Alya reached over to unlock her phone, which sat on the floor beside her. “Mar just texted me a bit ago that they’re leaving her parent’s bakery and should be here soon.”

“Yum,” Nino said, quickly selecting a few options on the screen before the next loading page opened for their new mission. “Alright then, how about we call this the last round for now? We’ll sign on with Adrien and Mar-bear later.”

John and Antione murmured their agreement.

“Let’s make this last match count, shall we?” Antoine suggested. “Show these guys up once and for all?”

“You got it, man.”

Leaning forwards, Alya repositioned her headset and inched closer to the TV, muttering something under her breath. Nino thought he caught the words “show THIS asshole who’s the easy target” and he grinned, proud of her for not taking this beating lying down.

The arena loaded, and he recognized the mountains and ruins of the location known as _Alpine Fortress_.

“Let’s move, Blue Team.”

Antoine quickly took the lead down one hallway. Alya and Nino moved to flank him. John disappeared and Nino knew he was going for his usual strategy of trying to find the high ground and act as sniper.

The goal was simple; the first team to defeat their enemies and “claim” the base for themselves wins. Most of the time, they would play on a mode that allowed respawning at certain checkpoints if you “died.” But John had been in a more intense mood that evening and had chosen a livestream that enforced a one-life rule. The upside was that you could be hit multiple times and it was likely that your hit points could keep you alive for a bit longer. The downside was that when you died, you were out until the next mission began.

It wasn’t Nino’s favorite mode to play on, and he knew Alya detested being put out of commission so much. He only consented because he knew they wouldn’t have to play on this mode for long.

The group made their way cautiously through the fortress. John and Antoine were discussing strategy in Nino’s ears. A hint of movement flickered in Alya’s screen; the three members of the enemy team were moving along a platform in the distance.

“There!” Alya cried, as John began targeting them from a floor just above. Nino and Antoine moved closer to the edge of their own platform, assisting in the shooting. One by one, the enemy fell.

“Well done, team!” John declared proudly, his player jumping down to rejoin them. “Just one more target and the game’s in the bag.”

“Where’s the fourth guy, though?” Alya said slowly, panning her camera around from her position at the entrance to an interior hallway.

Suddenly, Nino’s half of the screen turned crimson. His controller vibrated alarmingly in his hands, and the word ‘ELIMINATED’ flashed before him. The game displayed that both John and Antoine were out as well, all three of them killed in a single blow by a grenade from the remaining enemy player. Antoine swore loudly into Nino’s headphones.

“Wait… WAIT! What just happened?!” Alya yelped, frantically trying to find better shelter, having narrowly avoided the attack.

“I…” Nino stared at the screen, processing this sudden turn of events with growing horror. “I think we were all just killed by a grenade.”

“What?!” Alya shot up to her knees, her eyes wide in panic. “So that means I’m –”

“That means you’re it, babe.”

“Oh holy _crap_. Oh HOLY FU–”

“It’s ok! We’re ok!” Nino rose to a crouch next to her, turning back and forth between her and the screen. He had no idea why this time of all times was so tense, but adrenaline was pumping through him nonetheless. His hands hovered towards her, unsure of how to help. “You just have one guy left! That’s it, he’s all that’s between you and winning –”

“Yeah and it’s THAT guy!” Alya cried. She was right, the only one left to beat was the dude who had been targeting her this whole time. Nino’s heart sank further.

John and Antoine were shouting encouragement to her. Alya was still trying to retreat in panic, and Nino could hear her controller shaking as the enemy player tried again and again to take her out with grenades, his tiny dot appearing and disappearing on the edge of Alya’s tiny map as he chased her.

“Oh no, oh no, oh no, OH NO!” Alya moved swiftly through the virtual world, leaping over railings and diving from ledge to ledge. Her hit points were shrinking with every explosion.

“Get out of there!” Nino cried, pulling at his hair with worry. “That’s a dead end! If you don’t get out fast he’ll have you cornered!”

“Ugh! _Enough_ of this!” Alya barked.

The next two seconds happened so fast, Nino could hardly process it. Alya’s scrambling camera movements stopped dead. She whipped around to face the doorway she’d just run through, and aimed her gun. The enemy’s dot bolted towards her, and as his player rounded the corner Nino saw another grenade flying through the air. Letting out a cry of rage, Alya began firing.

And then there was stillness.

Nino expected the _Game Over_ page to flash over Alya’s side of the screen, but it never came. Instead, the large script displayed WINNER: BLUE TEAM.

“What just happened?” Alya said again, frozen in place.

Nino stared at the screen in disbelief. “I… I think you just… killed that guy.”

“I… I did… what?”

“I think you just… won?”

“I won?”

“You WON?!”

Their friends were shouting and cheering so loud Nino thought his eardrums would burst.

“I WON!” Alya’s arms shot up in victory as she screamed.

He burst out in hysterical laughter when – _WHACK!_ Something small and very hard collided with his head, knocking him back to the ground, his glasses askew. Looking around, he found Alya’s controller lying next to him, and Alya herself staring at him with her hands over her mouth in shock.

In Alya’s excitement, she’d lost her grip on her controller, and had sent it flying into the air.

“Did you just –?”

“I’m so sorry!” she gasped, trying and failing to not laugh at the look on his face as he sat up again. “I didn’t mean to, I promise!” Her apology didn’t quite come across as she giggled harder and harder, gasping for breath.

Nino sat there frozen as she doubled over, tears of mirth were streaming down her face, fogging up her glasses. A familiar warmth spread through him and left tingles through his fingers.

‘ _I want to marry this girl.’_

Getting back up on his knees, he lunged forward. Alya let out a yelp as he tackled her in a hug, both of them laughing as he held her tight.

“Proud of you,” he murmured into her warm, curly hair.

“Thanks,” she said softly, laying back on the ground and grinning at him. “I kinda kicked ass, didn’t I?”

“When do you _not?”_ a voice said from the door, and Nino looked up to find Marinette and Adrien entering the apartment, carrying a few pizza boxes and a package that he recognized from the Dupain-Chang bakery.

“We ran into the delivery guy outside,” Adrien explained, bringing the boxes to the living room and setting them on the coffee table.

“You mean he just trusted you and let you take them?” Alya exclaimed, grabbing a piece of pizza as Nino said goodbye to John and Antoine while signing off of the live setting. “You could have been anyone!”

“Excuse you, I’m the most trustworthy person ever!” Marinette said indignantly, plopping down onto the couch beside Adrien and snatching up her own slice.

“Well, _we_ know that but ‘Delivery Dude’ doesn’t,” Nino  offered as Adrien laughed. Taking a closer look at the pastry box, Nino grinned. The top of it had been claimed by a cartoonish doodle of what Nino could only assume was Marinette’s parents waving hello. “A masterpiece by Tom, I’m guessing?”

Marinette chuckled, nodding. “They say hello.”

“Ah, I’m going to miss this,” Adrien sighed, leaning further into the cushions and putting his feet up on the table.

“Miss what?” Marinette asked through a mouthful of food.

“This,” he repeated, gesturing to the room at large. “Hanging out like this all the time.”

“What are you talking about, we’ll still hang out,” Alya frowned. “School isn’t the end of everything.”

“Yeah but be real, you guys are _always_ slammed with work,” Nino chimed in. “You all really should have worked harder at getting famous immediately after high school like I did.”

Alya snorted.

“Eh, I gave the whole fame thing a shot,” Adrien said, waving his hand dismissively. “Wasn’t my speed.”

Marinette gave him an amused look.

“Speaking of getting famous,” Alya said, turning meaningfully to Nino. “Have you told them yet, babe?”

“Told us what?” Marinette asked, looking between the two of them.

“Well,” Nino took a deep breath, beaming. “I just got a call back today from that indie film company.”

“Whoa, _what?”_ Adrien leaned forward excitedly. “Did you get it?”

“I got the job! I’m going to be doing the soundtrack for their next movie!”

“Nino! That’s amazing!” Marinette squealed.

Alya leaned into him and gave him a kiss on his cheek, leaving a warm tingling behind. He looked down at her grinning, feeling wonderfully overwhelmed. He had been dreaming of working in film production for years, and now his ambitions were finally coming true.

“Thanks guys. I still can’t believe it. I mean this is just a small project but it could still be my foot in the door to officially working in the film industry.”

“Don’t forget about us when you make it big, man,” Adrien teased.

“Nah, how could I forget the little people?” Nino said, making Marinette giggle.

“Oh! By the way, thanks for all the pics, Adrien,” Alya said, reaching forward and nudging Adrien’s foot. “Those were all totally gorgeous!”

Adrien grinned, ducking his head in embarrassment. “Thanks, Alya.”

“You’re going to be taking that photography class, right?”

“Yeah! I have my fist class tomorrow morning.”

“That’ll be exciting,” Marinette said, smiling. “I can’t believe we’re already going back to it all tomorrow, it feels like this break has just flown by.”

“Right?” Alya nodded. “I mean this is my last semester of university! I can’t even wrap my mind around that!”

“I know, this will be my last year in my studio,” Marinette sighed. Nino sensed some disappointment in her voice.

“Isn’t Meesh supposed to be getting into town soon?” he asked, remembering her friend from class.

“Mhmm,” she nodded. “I think she got in earlier this week. I haven’t seen her yet but I will tomorrow morning.”

“Tell her from me that we need to get together immediately!” Alya said, gathering up another slice of pizza as Nino began connecting the two additional controllers to the console.

They continued chatting while they played a few rounds of _Crystalcore_ , using a much easier mode that allowed respawning. Alya enthusiastically described her earlier brush with virtual death, and Nino could tell that win had definitely re-sparked her interest in the game. Marinette’s parents had provided a half-dozen chocolate croissants – Alya’s favorites – and between the four of them, it didn’t take long for the pizzas and pastries to disappear. As the night wound down, the girls decided to head home before it got too late.

“I don’t want to oversleep on my last first day of school, after all,” Marinette said, looking around for her sandals.

“Why not? Isn’t it kind of tradition at this point?” Nino teased. Marinette threw one of the couch pillows at him while Adrien and Alya snickered. Grinning, Nino pulled Alya into a kiss. “Sure you don’t want to stay over tonight?” he asked, pressing his forehead against hers.

“I wish I could, but I have to pretend to be a responsible adult for a little bit and try to get a good night’s sleep. I have a lot to do tomorrow.”

“Aw, fine. But I’m claiming you on Friday for date night, whether your workload agrees or not.”

Alya grinned and nodded, pulling him in for one last kiss, and paying no attention to their friends who were having a whispered exchange near the door.

Nino and Adrien bade their girls goodnight, Adrien calling “See you soon!” to Marinette before closing the door. Nino was on the verge of asking if he wanted to do another round of gaming when Adrien let out a great yawn.

“Well, I think I’m going to turn in early too,” he said, heading in the direction of his room.

“Seriously?” Nino said, raising an eyebrow. “It’s not even that late.”

“Yeah, but I mean I should probably get on an early schedule for school, you know how it is.”

“Really? The man who constantly stays at work till all hours of the night wants to get on an early schedule?” Nino smirked.

“Yes,” Adrien nodded seriously, leaning his head out of his bedroom door. “Yes I do. It’s never too late to turn over a new leaf, right?”

“Yeah, sure,” Nino said, snorting as the door closed. Shaking his head and laughing softly, he plopped back down on the couch and reset his game to single-player mode, amused at how just how subtle his best friend clearly thought he could be.

* * *

 

Ladybug paced the highest beam of her apartment building’s rooftop, feeling calm and content as she listened to the city’s nightlife.

“I hope I didn’t keep M’lady waiting too long?” came a familiar voice from behind her, and she turned with a smile to greet Chat Noir as he padded softly towards her.

“Not too long at all. Alya wanted me to help her pick out a top for tomorrow, but I managed to get out of it quicker than usual by insisting I was dead tired. It helps that I’ve been working so much, because now there’s more truth to it,” she said, standing on her toes and reaching her arms up around his neck to pull him down into a kiss. He hummed against her mouth happily, and she broke off with a laugh as his involuntary purr rumbled through her. “I’m never gonna get over that, am I?”

“Honestly, _I’m_ still not over it, and I’ve had years to come to terms with it,” he said, straightening up a little, his tail flicking behind him.

Ladybug grinned up at him, enjoying the lights that reflected in his glowing emerald eyes.

“Well, shall we get too it then? I wasn’t joking about getting to school early tomorrow.”

“Wait, seriously?” Chat let out a snort as they stepped closer to the edge of the roof.

“Hey, I can dream can’t I?” she said defensively, giving him a sidelong smirk. “Alright, last one to the top of _la Tour Montparnasse_ pays for the next coffee date.”

“You’re on, Bugaboo,” he said, crouching low to the metal paneling. In a single motion, they both launched into the air, soaring high above the glittering landscape of Paris, their laughter echoing into the sky as an ocean of cold blue stars winked down at them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello dear readers! I feel I should apologize. When I posted Ch 1, I didn’t intend for there to be a 2 month hiatus immediately following it. The last while has been... a rather difficult time for me and my family. Between traveling a lot, two deaths in the family, some traumatic car troubles, and straight up just feeling depressed and stagnant in life with a crummy job... The writing inspiration just hasn’t been visiting me much lately. Which is extra frustrating because I’m really excited about this story and really want to share it with you.
> 
> Anyways, I’m hoping to get Ch 3 out a little bit sooner, but with everything going on please forgive me if it takes me a while to get this whole fic out. Life happens, ya know?
> 
> To everyone who left me comments on Ch 1 and gave it kudos, THANK YOU!!! You make all this worthwhile! I adore you all!


	3. Chapter 3

A refreshingly cool breeze swirled around Marinette as she made her way through campus. Bright patches of early morning sunlight streamed between the buildings, and the only sounds that reached her were enthusiastic twitters from birds soaring around the trees overhead. Adjusting the fully stocked cardboard coffee tray in her hands, she took in a deep breath and grinned.

Today felt like it was going to be a good day.

She’d managed to stay true to the goals she’d shared with Chat Noir the night before; when her alarm had gone off, she’d actually gotten up with it. And even with showering and prepping for the day, she’d ended up with plenty of time to stop by the nearby café and place an order.

“Mar-bear!”

A familiar voice rang out, and looking around Marinette spotted Meesh hurrying towards her, her long dark mohawk trailing behind her in a thick braid.

“Meesh!” Marinette cried, letting out an “Oof!” as her friend barreled into her and wrapped her in a hug. “You’re here!”

“How have you been?” Meesh asked, releasing the hug but keeping her arm wrapped through Marinette’s as they continued on. “You’re here so early, this is so unlike you!”

“Hey! It’s a new year, might as well start off on the right foot,” Marinette laughed, removing one of the to-go cups from the coffee tray and holding it out. “And I’ve been great. How are you? How was the move?”

Meesh took the coffee gratefully and shrugged. “Hectic, but alright. I always hate leaving home – and I especially hate leaving Benjamin – but at least it’s only for one more year.”

“Where’s the new place?”

“In one of the neighborhoods on that hill behind the library. You and Alya need to come over soon, I’ll make you guys dinner!”

Marinette let out an excited hum at the thought of that. Meesh always brought large bags full of fresh Mexican spices, a gift from her uncle who ran his own company. Food from Meesh was to die for every time. “I’ll let her know! She was asking about you last night.”

The two girls continued around the corner and their familiar studio building came in to view. Marinette’s heart leaped at the sight; after spending countless hours working there over the last three years, it was thrilling to be back once more.

Climbing the stairwell and opening the door to the third floor, Meesh let out a soft, “Yes!” and held out her fist for Marinette to bump. “First ones here, first choice of desk!”

Marinette returned the fist bump, letting out a dramatic sigh. “Oh, however will we choose?”

“Goodness me, I just don’t know!” Meesh exclaimed, walking over to the desk second from the corner window and dumping her bag on it without hesitation.

Marinette laughed, following her and placing her own things on the corner desk, the very same one which she’d claimed as her own the previous year. Turning to look out the window, she placed her hands on her hips and took in the beautiful view. If she was being truthful, it wasn’t unusual to see the campus below her as it was now, filling with life and light as the many students began their day; but it was far more often than not that she would see it from drowsy eyes after spending an all-nighter working. To watch this now feeling so refreshed and charged for the coming day felt very nice indeed.

Going back to Meesh, she grabbed the second large cup out of the coffee tray and perched herself on her stool. They chatted happily, discussing their ideas for the Senior Capstone they would be putting together the following semester, and wondering what sorts of assignments awaited them in the coming months as their studio slowly filled with their fellow classmates.

“Hello ladies,” someone said above the growing noise. They swiveled their stools to see Marinette’s favorite instructor approaching them, dressed all in an elegant black as usual, and only her jewelry glittering with color.

“Good morning, Madam Charbonneau,” Meesh greeted as Marinette pulled a third coffee out of the tray and offered it.

“Did you have a good summer?” she asked, as Charbonneau accepted the drink with a smile.

“Thank you, my dear, you’re too kind. I certainly had a _busy_ summer, but yes it was very good. I hope you are both ready for an exciting final year?”

“Very,” Marinette said, while Meesh nodded enthusiastically.

“Excellent.” Charbonneau grinned, before moving off to greet a few other people.

As she turned back to Meesh to continue their conversation, a figure from across the room caught Marinette’s eye; Mathis was setting his bag down at his usual desk from the previous year. A twinge of unease passed through Marinette as the memories of what he’d done to her months ago came rushing back.

After the fateful Akuma attack that had brought the Student Gala to its horrendous conclusion, everyone had treated the situation the same as all other attacks. Hawkmoth was the one behind everything, and those who were Akumatized were considered as much the victim as anyone else.

But even though Marinette supported this approach wholeheartedly, she still couldn’t help but despised Mathis; after all, everything he had done to sabotage her and other students leading up to the Gala had nothing to do with any supervillains.

Adrien had encouraged her to tell her instructors about all Mathis had done, but without any concrete proof, Marinette had felt that it wouldn’t do any good. And since he had gained sympathy for being Akumatized, she might’ve just come across as spiteful. So instead, she’d kept the truth to herself. Surprisingly, Mathis had abandoned his usual snide remarks and criticisms after she’d returned to school from the hospital. In fact, he’d made no efforts to interact with her at all. Thus she, in turn, refrained from acknowledging him, and life had gone on in peace.

As if sensing her thoughts towards him, Mathis looked up and locked eyes on her. Marinette held his gaze defiantly for a long moment before turning fully back to Meesh, who was in the middle of animatedly telling her about a family trip from that summer. Marinette smiled and nodded, as though she’d been listening the whole time. After a moment, she chanced a glance back at Mathis. He had his back turned to her, and was busying himself pinning things up to the wall above his desk. Taking a deep breath Marinette looked away from him again, deciding to just keep ignoring him as best she could for the rest of the year, before she would finally be free of him for good.

A tall man with shoulder-length brown hair pulled into a ponytail walked through the door just then, and spotting the two of them at their desks, he picked his way over to them, smiling.

“Alec!” Marinette called to him, standing and giving him a hug once he reached them. “How are you? It’s so good to see you!”

“It’s great to see you guys too!” he said, giving her a squeeze and then hugging Meesh in turn. Pulling a nearby stool over to a neighboring desk, he set his things down. “I’ve been great! I’ll miss sleeping in regularly, but it’s good to be back.”

Marinette laughed and nodded in agreement, offering him the fourth and final coffee from the tray, which he took enthusiastically. Alec was from America, and had been one of the top three winners with Meesh and herself at the Gala that previous semester. In the months that followed, they had gotten to know him more and Marinette now considered him a very dear friend.

They continued catching up as the noise levels grew and the studio filled with familiar faces. Friends greeted friends who they hadn’t seen in months, and the atmosphere was filled with anticipation. Finally, the instructors gathered on one side of the hall near the wide windows, and Charbonneau called for everyone’s attention.

“Welcome, students, welcome!” Charbonneau addressed them with a nod and a smile as they gathered around to listen. “Welcome to your final year at the Academy! You all have come so far over these last few years, and have grown impressively as designers. This year, we plan to push you more than ever, to stretch you in new directions, and challenge your skills in preparation of launching you into the professional industry. We know what you all are capable of, and we want you to see it for yourselves.

“This semester, we will be doing something a little different,” she continued, taking hold of a small box that had been sitting on the desk beside her. Marinette noticed it seemed to be full of slips of paper. “While it is often preferable to design on your own, there will be instances when you will have to work closely with another person, or even with a team of fellow designers, on an extensive project. So, for the better part of these coming months, we will have you partnered up with a fellow classmate.”

A murmur of surprise rose from the students.  

“Are they serious?” Meesh hissed to Marinette. “It’s our final year! They _can’t_ expect us to show our best skills on a _team_ project!”

Marinette frowned and nodded. It had been a long time since she’d had to work on a serious assignment with a partner – or even in a group – and that had only ever been in a traditional classroom setting. She’d never actually _designed_ with anyone else so closely.

“I know for many of you this isn’t your first choice,” Charbonneau said loudly, reclaiming their attention. The whispers died down and they all looked back at her, albeit warily. “But sometimes in life, you can’t always choose to have everything go your way. Many of you will likely have to work under a lead designer, depending on the kind of job you strive towards after graduation. And in those situations, you will have to work closely under _their_ vision. This exercise will give you a taste for collaboration, and allow you the opportunity to figure out how you best cooperate with a partner in a setting where the stakes aren’t as high.”

As much as Marinette wasn’t thrilled by this project, she had to admit that Charbonneau had a point.

“Can’t we choose our own partners, Madame Charbonneau?” asked a tall girl standing on Meesh’s other side.

“Unfortunately, you may not,” Charbonneau said, reaching into the box to shuffle the bits of paper around. Marinette realized the box must be filled with their names. “Just as much as you can’t always choose your professional situation, you won’t be able to choose who you work with. Collaborating on something with your best friend is one thing; collaborating with someone you have yet to get to know is another. Your assignment will be to work together on a collection of twelve pieces total. Come up with an inspired theme, and develop your visions together. Explore one another’s strengths and weaknesses, and figure out a dynamic that works to your team’s advantage. From this point on, you must work together as one.” With that, she pulled out two of the slips and read them aloud. “Antony and Clarissa, you will be our first pair.”

The two students smiled nervously at one another. Marinette noticed most of her fellow classmates still looked a bit apprehensive. Peering around, she imagined that working with nearly any one of these people wouldn’t be half bad. There was, of course, a range of talent, but everyone had something to bring to the table, and she could certainly learn a thing or two from whoever she was put with. This might not be such a bad assignment after all.

Charbonneau continued pulling names out of the box, and as they were called, the pairs were shuffling around to stand next to one another.

“Meesh and Alec? You two are together.”

Marinette felt a small pang of disappointment as her friends high-fived each other; either Meesh or Alec would have been her top choices for this project.

“Marinette...”

She turned her attention back to Charbonneau with anticipation.

“You and Mathis will be partners this semester.”

Meesh and Alec let out a collective gasp. Even a few other students looked around in surprise. Marinette was rooted to the spot. She stared at Charbonneau, who glanced between her and Mathis, looking slightly concerned. Mathis, who stood at the opposite side of the class turned his head towards her, and he looked just as shocked as she felt.

_‘Mathis?_ Freaking _Mathis?!_ ’ Her stomach felt as if it had decided to exit her body via her feet. ‘ _No, absolutely not. There was_ no _way.’_ Well, there went her plans of ignoring him for the year.

Charbonneau continued to read the last few names. Thoughts of shouting _“No!”,_ of declaring she’d refused to work with him, of demanding a new partner raced across her mind. But she did none of these things, her tongue frozen and heavy in her mouth. Absently, she heard Charbonneau name off the last pairs, and declare that the rest of their studio time was to be spent collaborating on ideas and researching inspiration. They were allowed to leave the building if they wanted as long as they sent in an email update by the end of the day to show any progress they’d made.

The hall filled with chatter as people broke off to start working. Mathis didn’t move. Neither did Marinette. She watched him, but his face had gone blank. A hand suddenly wrapped around Marinette’s arm and she looked around to find Meesh pulling her back to the corner their desks sat in, Alec trailing behind them looking unsure.

“You need to talk to Charbonneau,” Meesh said, releasing Marinette and sitting on her stool. “After everything he did to you? There’s no way, no _way_ you can work with him!”

“You think I _want_ to?!” Marinette hissed back, sitting on her own school, feeling a swell of anxiety twist knots in her stomach. “I don’t want anything to do with him! But--”

“But nothing!” Meesh insisted. “He’s the _worst!_ You’ll be dragged down for this entire project. C’mon, you know I’m right.”

“I mean yeah, this will suck,” Marinette conceded. “But… I mean… well, if _I_ don’t do it, someone else will have to. And isn’t it better that _I_ already know all his manipulative tricks? I don’t want anyone else to suffer just because I didn’t want to deal with him.”

“You don’t always need to be the hero, Mar,” Alec said earnestly.

Marinette let out a snort at that, knowing he had no idea how close to home he’d just hit. “You’re right, no one ever _needs_ to be the hero, but it’s still the right thing to do isn’t it?” she countered.

“You’re too nice for your own good, Mar,” he said, shaking his head. She bit her lip, feeling conflicted.

“I can see the headlines now,” Meesh said dramatically. “ _‘Sweetest Girl In All Of Paris Tries To Do The Right Thing, Ends Up Convicted of Second Degree Murder_. Sources say she was driven to ultimate violence by the biggest prick this century has ever seen!’”

Alec laughed. Marinette rolled her eyes and was about to shoot back a retort when she heard her name.

“Marinette?”

Turning, she found Mathis approaching them from between the desks. Instantly her guard was up, prepared for whatever snide insults he was going to throw. But after a moment, he sighed and pushed his hands into his pockets looking uncomfortable.

“Well, it looks like we’re stuck with each other,” he said, the muscles in his jaw tense.

“Yeah… looks like it,” Marinette said slowly, crossing her arms over her chest. “And I don’t know _what_ kind of sabotage you have in mind, Mathis, but I really don’t have time for--”

“I’m sorry,” he interjected suddenly.

Marinette frowned. “For what, exactly?” she asked. Beside her, her friends were doing nothing to hide their eavesdropping; Alec was looking back and forth between them. Meesh was glaring daggers at Mathis.

“You’re right. There isn’t any time for mind-games or whatever. This is our last year here, and I just want to use it grow as a designer and gain more knowledge and skill.” He shifted his weight to one leg, but never broke eye contact. His voice had an earnesty to it that she’d never heard before. “I’m sorry for how last semester went down. I let my temper and old habits get the best of me, and you won that competition fairly.”

Marinette tilted her head. Surprise and confusion coursed through her. There was no way he was actually, _genuinely_ apologizing, was he?

“Oh, come on!” Meesh burst out loudly. “You can’t actually expect us to believe a single word you say!” Marinette looked over at her, and Meesh shook her head warningly.

“No, I didn’t really think you would,” Mathis said irritably, a hint of his usual drawl coming back into his voice. “But regardless of whether you believe me or not, I want to do well this semester. And if we _must_ work as a team, it wouldn’t really do me any good to hinder things, would it?”

Marinette knew begrudgingly that he had a point. This was exactly how she imagined any one of them should behave in their sort of situation. Though of course, all of this would require thinking rationally and behaving like an actual, honest human being; things which she’d never really considered Mathis capable of.

“Is there a problem?”

Marinette turned to see Madame Charbonneau watching their conversation, wearing a critical expression. Mathis looked back at Marinette with an eyebrow raised, as if to say, _‘Is_ there a problem?’

Taking in a deep breath, Marinette was silent for a long moment, thinking hard. Finally, she let out a sigh and shook her head. “No, Madame. We’re fine.”

Meesh scoffed incredulously. Madam Charbonneau was regarding them closely. Marinette put on a reassuring smile and said, “It’ll be fine. For this project, we’ll make it work.”

“Very well. Please let me know if this becomes any more trouble.” Charbonneau shot Marinette one last meaningful glance before turning to check on the other pairs of students scattered throughout the studio. Marinette suddenly had a strong feeling that Charbonneau might understand a bit more about her situation with Mathis than she was letting on. Smiling slightly to herself with this knowledge, she turned back to Mathis and glared up at him.

“Alright, let’s not dance around this,” she said in clipped tones. “I don’t trust you. Not even a little bit. But I do trust that you are a good designer. We are stuck with each other for the time being, whether we like it or not. But we don’t need to be friends to make this work, we just need to want to make a good collection and find a way to get along with as little bloodshed as possible.”

Mathis regarded her, and she saw a flicker of amusement in his expression.

“Fair enough,” he said, offering out his hand to her. “Begrudging partners?”

Marinette smirked before taking his hand and giving it one, firm shake. “Begrudging partners.”

Mathis released her hand and made his way back to his desk to collect his bag. Marinette watched him for a moment before turning to her own desk and gathering up her things. Meesh and Alec were still looking at her in surprise. She shrugged, a little defeated.

“It’s not like I have much choice,” she said.

Meesh sighed. Putting her hand on Marinette’s shoulders, she whispered, “Watch him like a damn hawk, Mar. If he tries to pull anything, let us know immediately. He’ll never know what hit him.”

Marinette smiled at her, grateful to have a friend like Meesh that totally had her back.

The rest of the morning was devoted to inspiration hunting and library research. Both she and Mathis gathered up armfuls of books about everything from historical architecture to sci-fi and space travel, and they claimed a large corner table in the library to pour over them.

They discussed the merits of merging contradicting time periods together, and began to explore the concept of embellishing clean, futuristic lines with the types of ornamentation found in such highly decorated places as Versailles.

Every now and then, Mathis would say something rude or insulting that more befitted his character as she knew him, and in those moments Marinette would have to practically sit on her hands to keep from slapping him across his face. But regardless, she had to admit that it was obvious he was actually trying.

Eventually, they found themselves producing sketches and sketches based on their theme, and agreed to keep creating concepts until they could meet again in person during their next studio day.

By the end of the long period, Marinette felt unusually exhausted. The emotional tension that came with being around Mathis for such a long time had worn her thin. On any other day, Marinette knew she would’ve stayed in studio to keep improving their initial designs. But almost unthinkingly, she found herself making her way towards the subway station and boarding a train.

Tikki risked poking her head out of Marinette’s bag to look up at her curiously.

Marinette glanced down and shrugged apologetically. “I know, I just needed to see our guys for a bit.”

Tikki grinned. “You don’t need to apologize to me, I understand. This morning was way rougher than you were expecting, huh?”

“Ugh, tell me about it.”

Their whispered conversation was cut short as more people boarded the train car at the next stop. It wasn’t long before Marinette was climbing the steps back into the bright afternoon sunlight.

The Agreste studio offices were set up in one of the larger buildings that inhabited downtown. Inside the entrance hall, the air was cool and conditioned. Marinette’s footsteps clicked on the polished marble floor as she made her way past the receptionist desks – where a couple of familiar people greeted her with nods and friendly smiles – and hurried up the grand staircase to the floor where Adrien’s office lived.

Marinette was always surprised by how lively this place was; where the Agreste mansion always felt so cold and empty and solemn, this company buzzed with activity. People hurried past her with stacks of materials or large magazine layout boards. Racks of high couture garments were being wheeled in and out of rooms. Every now and then, Marinette caught sight of an interior photoshoot taking place, the bright lights glowing to rival the sunlight she’d just left outside.

Making her way down several long, bustling halls, she finally rounded the last corner, bringing Adrien’s office into view. The floor-to-ceiling glass walls were gently frosted lower down, but became clearer and clearer above eye level. Marinette could make out Adrien sitting at his desk with his back to her, gazing out the window at the city stretched before him. Opening the door, she realized he was on some sort of conference call, speaking into an earpiece.

“Well if we can get her on board for the winter line, I’d say we’re in pretty good shape,” he was saying.

Marinette quietly put her bag down on top of his own backpack that sat in one of his guest chairs – he must’ve gotten there from his own morning classes not long ago – then moved around his desk to turn his chair around towards her. Adrien gave a small start when he felt himself being moved, but shot her a broad smile when he saw her. Without saying a word, Marinette sat herself onto his lap, snuggled into his chest, and buried her face in his neck. She felt him smile against her head as he wrapped his arms around her protectively. Already, just being close to him was causing her anxieties of the morning to fade away a little.

“Tell her I will come to Toronto myself for a few days if that would make things easier,” he continued, not missing a beat. “She shoots dramatic outdoor lighting better than most, and her techniques would be perfect to show off the way this series looks.”

Marinette fiddled absently with one his shirt’s buttons, sad at the thought of him gone for a few days, but pleased that he would be getting to travel. He always loved assignments that took him places.

“Alright, let me know what she says, and hopefully we can arrange something for October, yeah? Cool, talk to you soon. Bye.” Adrien reached a hand up to his ear and clicked off the earpiece. “Hey Bugaboo, what’s up?”

“Hey,” she said, her voice muffled a little by his shoulder. “Did your classes go well this morning?”

“Yeah, that photography class looks like it’s going to be amazing.” He gave her a gentle squeeze. “I’m guessing my morning went a little better than yours though, huh?”

Marinette groaned. “You’re never going to believe this,” and she launched into a recap of the events in studio.

“Wait, _Mathis?”_ Adrien exclaimed when she got to the part of the name drawing. “You have to be paired up with _Mathis?!”_

“Yup.”

“And you can’t get swapped with anyone else?”

“Nope.”

_“Why not?!”_

Marinette sighed, and explained how even though it would be uncomfortable, at least she knew what he was capable of.

“Uh, yeah? _Exactly?”_ Adrien said angrily, shifting her off himself a little to better look in her eyes. “Don’t you think you act heroically enough as it is without making your personal school life suffer too?”

“That’s kinda what Alec said, too,” Marinette sighed, rubbing her eyes wearily.

“He’s right, you know,” Adrien huffed. “Mar, this is the guy who put you in a _coma_. You shouldn’t be spending your time with him! It’s not safe.”

“Adrien, he’d been Akumatized,” she sighed. “He would’ve never been able to do what he did if it wasn’t for Hawkmoth –”

“Oh, I’m sorry, is that supposed to make it _better?”_ he shot back. “Everything choice he made up until being Akumatized was still all him.”

“Your right!” she countered. “Which is why I don’t want him working with anyone else! I mean who’s better to handle something like this than Ladybug, y’know?”

“So you’re just going to step in front of the train on the off-chance that no one else will have to?”

“Well, now you’re just making my arguments _for_ me,” she teased.

Adrien opened his mouth again, clearly ready to argue further, but was interrupted by a sharp knocking. Turning, they saw Gabriel Agreste standing in the doorway, looking just as stern as always. Marinette hurriedly climbed off Adrien and stood up straight. Adrien made no move other than to turn his chair slightly more towards his father.

“Ms. Dupain-Cheng, what a pleasant surprise,” Gabriel said, his low voice cool and collected. “Adrien didn’t tell me you would be stopping by today, I would have made reservations for lunch.”

“It’s lovely to see you, Monsieur Agreste,” she said, smiling nervously. “Adrien didn’t know I was coming. I just decided spur of the moment to come and see him.”

“I can still call for a reservation if you’d like –”

“There’s no need, father,” Adrien cut him off. Marinette glanced down at him and saw that his face had taken on the usual impassive façade she knew he saved primarily for interacting with Gabriel. “Marinette was just checking in, she has to go to work here shortly.”

He looked up at her briefly, and Marinette instantly caught on to his plan of protecting them both from an extended social engagement. “He’s right,” she said, adopting an apologetic air and moving to gather her bag off the chair. “I really must be going.”

“Before you leave,” Gabriel interjected, causing Marinette to freeze uncertainly on her way past him. “I have a small request to make of you.”

Marinette looked back at Adrien, who’s façade had cracked just enough to allow a small frown through. “Oh? What sort of request?”

“You are in your final year at the Academy, is that correct?”

“Erm… yes, Monsieur?”

“Well, I will be hosting an event at my home in a couple weeks’ time. It is a sort of annual get-together for all my best business partners and designers. A ‘thank you for all your hard work’ party, if you will.”

Marinette tilted her head. She knew of this event; Adrien had told her about it in the past. But he’d done his best to avoid returning to his old home ever since he became a legal adult and moved out on his own.

“Some of the people there are looking for new, talented designers to join their teams in the coming year. Designers like yourself. I have already spoken to a few of them about the skills and professionalism you have demonstrated over the years. They would love to meet you in person.”

Marinette had thought all the big surprises for that day were over. But hearing that Gabriel had been talking her up to potential employers had her utterly shook. She stared at him, as if trying to understand whether she’d heard correctly.

“Oh, my goodness, th-that is such an honor!” she sputtered, feeling her cheeks going red. “I-I had no idea you were… thank you so much!”

“Yes, well,” he said, offering her a small smile. “Adrien has always managed to find an excuse for why he cannot attend this annual party, but perhaps you can convince him that one night away from his duties won’t do any harm? Please, I insist.”

Marinette fought the urge to let out an incredulous snort. Hearing Adrien’s father of all people say that his son needed to forgo work to attend a party was the last thing she’d ever expected to hear in her life. She looked over at Adrien again, unsure of what to say. His father had cornered them quite successfully.

Adrien’s shoulders slumped a little in defeat.

“Erm, well… how can we, uh, refuse?” she said finally, turning back to Gabriel and smiling hesitantly.

_‘Really, how?’_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> YOOOO!!! Guess who is the Actual Worst, coming at you with a brand spankin' new chapter!!! 
> 
> Honestly, I'm so sorry for the hiatus between updates. Let's just say, depression is a real MoFo and for most of December and January when I had actual time to write, I wasn't motivated. And then, February hit, I left my old soul-sucking job, and started working three new jobs all at once! Now I'm down to working two (thank God) with one of them being actual Graphic Design work, so that's awesome! And! I'm planning on moving into a new apartment with some awesome friends here in a couple months, so that's great. I may be crazy busy, but I'm finally feeling happy and energized and like my old self once again! 
> 
> Anyways, I am thrilled to be writing more, and I already have most of Chapter 4 written! I need to add in a few things and then do an editing read-through, but I'm planning on posting that here in the next few days at least. 
> 
> Also!!! I want to give a HUGE THANK YOU to everyone who has been commenting on this fic, giving it Kudos, and sending me all those wonderful messages! YOU GUYS ARE THE REAL MVP HERE!! Reading the amazing, positive things you had to say was so encouraging and motivating, I don't know how I would've gotten back into the swing of things without you all! So thank you, thank you, a million times over!!!


	4. Chapter 4

The first couple weeks of school had ushered in a gentle change in the weather. Gone was the blazing heat of Summer. Now, the nights were chilly, and the days remained comfortably cool. The late afternoon sun filtered through the still-green leaves of the trees on the Quad, dappling the ground with soft light.

Adrien let out a massive yawn. He was seated near a tall open window in the campus library. His computer and a couple large textbooks were spread out on the desk before him. Barely into the semester and he’d already managed to collect quite the stack of homework. And despite the fact that he was supposed to only be working part-time, his father had insisted he play no small part in the event planning for the evening’s party on top of everything else.

Adrien was worn out.

With a sigh, he hunched back over one of the books, trying to find the line he’d just read so as to get the quote right for the essay he was writing. Staring at the page, it took him several moments to realize he’d skimmed right over the line. Giving his head a little shake, he refocused on the words and mouthed them as he typed them out.

He paused again as another yawn took hold, his vision blearing a little. Leaning back in his chair, he looked out the window, watching people making their way up the wide paths. A guy was throwing a frisbee across the open space and his large dog loped happily after it. A couple people lounged under the towering trees, napping in the grass. Birds were chirping softly high above.

Adrien’s hair tickled his forehead in the soft breeze that floated through the window. He closed his eyes, enjoying the feeling. Maybe he _should_ rest, just for a short break. He was so tired. His breathing slowed to a gentle rhythm. And all else faded away.

_He was running._

_His lungs were burning. The effort of each breath was a fight all on its own._

_Darkness surrounded him. He stared around, frantically trying to find one tiny pinprick of light. Something. Anything._

_But there was nothing. An endless horizon of absolute nothing._

_On he ran. Desperate. There had to be a way out._

_The darkness was suffocating._

_He had to escape._

_“Adrien?”_

_The voice pierced his heart. He came to a halt, gasping for breath. Turning, he saw her, glowing a soft, deep blue as if the light came from within._

_The only light he could see in the sea of darkness._

_His mother._

_“Mom?”_

_“My love, can you hear me? I’ve missed you.”_

_“Mom please, what can I do?” he begged. He tried to move towards her. But his feet stayed put. He couldn’t move._

_The darkness was swallowing him up._

_“Adrien please come home. Please save me, you must save me!”_

_“Mom!” he cried, struggling frantically. “Mom what do I do!” He tried to claw his way forward. She reached out her arms to him, as if to embrace him. But she didn’t come closer._

_“Please Adrien, help me! HELP ME!” She was screaming._

_The nothingness was devouring him. He struggled against it but he couldn’t move. He could barely breath._

_“Adrien! ADRIEN SAVE ME!”_

_Her screams echoed like they were in a vast hall. They didn’t fade away. They grew and grew, filling the empty space. He was being smothered, crushed under the weight of the oppressive darkness._

_“No! Mom no! Please!”_

_The screams built in his head. There was nothing else. Only nothingness and the screaming, screaming, screaming._

_“No!”_

_He felt like his skull would shatter from the pressure._

“NO!”

Adrien jerked awake, startle by his own shout. His heart was pounding in his ears, and beads of cold sweat were running down the back of his neck. Looking around, it took him a moment to regain his bearings. No longer was he surrounded by the oppressive darkness. The soft light coming through the windows felt almost blinding in comparison. A few people were peeking out at him from around bookshelves and over desk dividers. One of his neighbors muttered “Dude, it’s not even midterms yet. Chill.”

Surreptitiously, Plagg poked his head out from one of the small pockets in Adrien’s bag. Adrien glanced at him, knowing they both had felt that darkness.

Reaching his shaking hands up to cover his face, Adrien tried desperately to slow his breathing, which had been coming out in ragged gasps as if he’d just finished battling an Akuma.

_‘It was a dream. It’s just another dream. It’s not real.’_

A buzzing vibrated through his desk, making him jump. Looking around, he saw his phone lighting up with an incoming call. Letting out a harsh breath and mentally shaking himself a little, he reached out to pick it up. Marinette’s picture filled the screen. He pressed the green button and put the phone to his ear.

“Hey,” he said quietly, grimacing a little when his voice had a bit of rasp, as if he really had been screaming.

“Hey,” she said, and her voiced echoed weirdly. “I’m just about to jump in the shower and get ready for tonight. I wanted to make sure you were still coming by later to eat some real food before we go over there?”

Adrien realized that she must be on speakerphone in her bathroom.

“Um, yeah. Yeah absolutely, I’ll be there.” He pulled the phone away from his ear to check the time. He must’ve fallen asleep for longer than he’d thought. The shadows in the library had lengthened somewhat. There were only a couple hours until the two of them were expected at the Agreste manor.

“You ok?” Marinette said after a short pause and he returned the phone to his ear.

“Yeah, I’m fine. Why wouldn’t I be?” he asked, pinching the bridge of his nose.

“No it’s nothing, it’s just… I dunno, you sound a little off.”

“Hm,” he grunted. “I’m fine, I just dozed off without meaning to.”

“You haven’t been getting enough rest, huh?” she said.

“Huh-uh. Actually, thanks for calling, or else I might’ve slept right through the party.”

“Ugh, and abandoned me to the wolves? How rude.”

“I know,” he smiled a little, using his free arm to gather up his things and shuffle them into his bag. “Terribly ungentlemanly of me.”

“I’m sorry, Adrien,” she sighed, her tone losing its humor a bit.

He frowned. “For what?”

“I shouldn’t have just accepted Monsieur Agreste’s request like that without talking with you first.”

“You’re still worried about that?” Adrien paused in cleaning off his desk. “Please tell me you haven’t been beating yourself up about it since then?”

“I mean…” Marinette groaned. “Yeah? Kind of? I know how touchy things are between you two, I just didn’t know how to… say no.”

“He has that sort of effect on people,” Adrien said, slinging his bag over his shoulder and setting off between the towering bookcases. “Don’t worry about it, Mar. He would’ve found a way to make me come whether you’d been there or not. He’s been putting the pressure on for months.”

“I know, but still…”

“I’m not mad at you. It’s not your fault,” he said gently, a small smile tugging at his lips. “If anything, I’m just glad you’ll be with me for it. At least now I’m guaranteed to have at least one person there that I like to talk to.”

“…You sure?”

“Sure that I like to talk to you? Well, I mean I don’t think we could’ve been such good partners all these years if you bored me.”

“Ha ha, very funny kitty.” He heard a soft rumbling and guessed that she’d just turned on the water. “You know what I meant.”

“It’s alright, Marinette. You did nothing wrong.”

“Kay,” she sighed. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t apologize, Mar.”

“I’m sorr– okay.”

“It’ll all be fine, alright?”

“Yeah, sorry, it will.”

“Marinette!”

“I’m sorry aH! SORRY! I CAN’T MAKE IT STOP!”

Adrien let out a bark of laughter, and shot his free hand up to cover his mouth, muffling the noise as he hurried past the reception desks. A librarian shot him an irritable look at his outburst.

“I’ll see you in a bit then?” she asked.

“Yep.” He kept smiling despite himself as he pushed open the library doors and made his way down the great stone steps. “Let’s get this slow torture over with.”

The time from when Adrien left campus to the start of the party seemed to fly by. All at once, he found himself dressed in an elegant suit and tie standing beside Marinette in front of his old family home. Taking in a deep breath, he steeled himself to enter the house he hadn’t seen the inside of in years. Marinette reached over to him and wrapped her warm, reassuring fingers between his. He looked down at her and found that her small encouraging smile gave him the strength he needed to step forward onto the property. 

Arm in arm, they made their way into the crowd of guests that stood under the glowing lights that had been strung up. Adrien thought it made the place seem warmer than he knew it to be. A dozen cocktail tables had been set up throughout the courtyard; waitstaff wearing dark red vests mingled around, carrying trays of everything from drinks to appetizers. Rhythmic melodies wafted from speakers scattered about the garden, controlled by a DJ off in one corner. Adrien was forcibly reminded of when Nino had been at those exact turn tables all those years ago, Akumatized as the Bubbler for his birthday.

The people were dressed in beautiful attire, as one would expect at a party hosted by one of the most highly esteemed fashion designers in the world. While some men wore classic black and white tuxes, many had forgone the traditional in favor of suites with bright colors and patterns. The women were decked even more splendidly, wearing elegant dresses in all the styles and hues one could imagine – and in some cases, even more fabulous suits than the men. A few couples danced along to the music. Everyone seemed to be glittering under the lights and stars above.

Marinette let out a soft gasp, and he turned to see her taking it all in with her mouth hanging open in awe. Adrien grinned as he watched her. If he wasn’t so tense about being in this place again, he would’ve been in an unending star-struck state from his Lady.

She had pulled her dark hair back into a sleek ponytail. A long silver chain hung around her neck and shimmered with tiny crystals as it traveled down the plunging neckline of her midnight blue dress. Floor length and long sleeved, it clung tightly to her body and flowed down into a short train that brushed along the ground. Her hem was embroidered with thousands of tiny silver stars that mirrored the night sky.

If he was to be perfectly honest, the longer he gazed at her, the less he could remember how to breath properly.

“Well if it isn’t two of my favorite people!” came a rumbling voice, and Adrien looked around to see a tall man with dark skin and long braided hair making his way towards them, beaming.

“Izzy, you’re here!” Marinette exclaimed happily, moving forward and releasing Adrien’s hand to be drawn into a tight hug.

“Of course!” Izzy said, moving to pull Adrien into a hug as well. “You don’t think Monsieur Agreste would neglect to invite his best material supplier, would you?”

“He’d be mad if he did,” Adrien said, relaxing a bit more in the presence of a familiar friend.

“So, how’s that new design project coming along, Mar?” Izzy asked. Marinette let out a strangled noise and threw her hands up in the air dramatically.

“Oh no, don’t get her started Izzy,” Adrien chuckled, reaching his arm around her shoulders.

“It’s absolutely ridiculous!” she exclaimed. “And I hate that he’s such a good designer because half the time just being _near_ him makes me want to smack him in the head.”

“Ah, so the fact that no one is dead yet in this situation means it’s going well, huh?” someone asked, and they turned to see one of Adrien’s work partners, Zacharias, coming their way while balancing four glasses of champagne for them.

“I mean, we’ve made it further than I thought we would without me throwing my pincushion at him, so yeah I think it’s going alright,” Marinette laughed, taking one of the glasses from him and stand on tiptoes to place a swift kiss on his cheek. Ever since Adrien and Marinette had started dating, she and Zacharias had gotten along swimmingly, and would often share their designs with one another for feedback.

Taking his own drink from his friend, Adrien tilted his head back and downed it all in one swig. He put the empty glass on the tray of a waiter that was floating by while simultaneously grabbing another. Turning back to the conversation, he caught Marinette’s eye. Her eyebrow twitched ever so slightly, and he picked up on her concern. Nodding apologetically, he sipped more slowly at the second champagne.

The four of them found their way to a corner of the courtyard and continued discussing Marinette’s semester assignment – and the merits of how much detail to put into a garment inspired by a Victorian period while maintaining a modern feel – and enjoyed the various appetizers that came their way. From time to time, people that Adrien and Zacharias had worked with on various projects came up to say hello. Adrien was feeling significantly calmer; if the evening was to consist mostly of making conversation with people he genuinely liked, he began to hope that the party might not be so uncomfortable as he was dreading.

“Good evening, Adrien,” someone said behind him, and he turned to find his father’s assistant, Nathalie, looking as prim and professional as ever.

“Hello Nathalie,” he replied, offering her a smile. “Everything is going well, I trust?”

“As well as it can,” she said, nodding. “I wanted to inform you that dinner is about to begin in the main banquet hall for those in higher standings with the company. I must go and check in on the head chef to confirm that we are ready to proceed. Your father is presently in a meeting with some of the executives.”

“Business as usual,” Adrien sighed. It was another element of his father’s events that he’d always hated; the higher-ups would dine with his father on obscenely expensive cuisine, while all the other guests were left outside to partying. It was just another way to sew division. Though on some level, he could never really decide which group of guests had the true short end of the stick

“Indeed. Would you please go to his office and let him know that he must be in the banquet hall to welcome the rest of his guests with an opening toast soon?”

Adrien’s jaw clenched with a slight pang of irritation. He’d been hoping to keep the interactions with his father to a minimum. All the tension that had been ebbing away with the help of Marinette and their friends came rushing back to him. But instead of letting it show, he simply nodded to Nathalie.

“I will inform him shortly,” he said.

Nathalie nodded, and turned to disappear through the sea of guests.

“Do you want me to come with you?” Marinette said softly, putting her hand on his shoulder.

Adrien shook his head. Wrapping his own hand around hers, he kissed her fingers gently. “No, it’s ok,” he said. “You keep catching up with Izzy and Zacharias. I won’t be long.”

“Alright,” she said, giving his hfingers a squeeze before letting him go.

Adrien wove his way around the party guests and climbed the stairs up to the large front doors, which stood open. Inside was filled with nearly as many people as there was outside. Glancing around the entrance hall, he noticed that nothing much had changed since he’d moved out. He had refrained from stepping foot in this place ever since, considering it a freedom to be rid of the confining walls and enforced solitude of his boyhood. Being back now brought on a flood of long-buried memories, and he shook his head a little to clear his mind.

He beelined towards the doors of his father’s study. Knocking softly, he turned one of the knobs and stepped inside.

Gabriel was pouring over his desks with a handful of the company executives. All of them were dressed as splendidly as the party-goers outside. One of them was talking about something to do with how the Fall Collection was being received.

Adrien cleared his throat loudly, causing them all to look up. “I’m terribly sorry to interrupt,” he said formally, putting on an apologetic smile. “I wanted to inform you all that dinner is about to begin.”

“Thank you, dear Adrien!” said one of the women whom Adrien recognized from the long years she and his father had worked together. “You are very right to pull us away. This evening is about letting lose a bit and celebrating, after all!”

Everyone murmured their ‘thank yous’ to him, moving passed him towards the door. Some shook his hand or kissed his cheeks in greeting. Gabriel was the only one who remained in place, watching him.

“Father, Nathalie just asked me to remind you of the welcoming toast you are supposed to say when everyone is gathered in the banquet hall.”

“Thank you, Adrien,” his father said, gathering everything up off his desk and storing it away. “I appreciate you coming to tell me. Somehow the evening has grown later than I’d realized.”

Adrien nodded, but as he turned to leave, he caught sight of the Miraculous Compendium sitting on one of the smaller tables. He paused, staring at it, and wondering for the umpteenth time where exactly his father had gotten ahold of it, and if he had any real knowledge of the true powers it held within.

Gabriel followed his gaze and moved to pick up the book. “I trust you and Mlle. Dupain-Cheng are having a pleasant time?” he asked, moving across the office to the Gustav Klimt portrait of Adrien’s mother.

“Yes. It seems everyone is having a good time.” Adrien followed his father slowly, watching while he entered the code to the secret safe behind the painting. “It’s nice to see the house so full of life again.”

“Yes, well,” Gabriel sighed, opening the safe door and placing the book and several other documents safely onto its shelves, beside a photograph of Adrien’s mother. “It’s still a lot of work to try and please so many people. I find it rather exhausting to be honest, but I suppose it’s necessary to keep the company happy.”

Adrien grunted noncommittally in response, and was turning to leave once again when a flash of blue within the safe caught his eye. He shot out his arm, blocking his father from closing the door. Gabriel looked him in mild curiosity but Adrien ignored him.

It had been years since he’d seen inside the safe for himself. And when he was a boy, he’d had no reason to find the small jeweled peacock significant. But he knew that jewel. He’d just seen it leafing through Master Fu’s copy of the Miraculous Compendium a few days ago. Made out of turquoise and azure glass, the jewel reflected the lights in a way that made it seem almost alive. Almost magical. And all at once, Adrien knew exactly what it was.

His father was in possession of the Peacock Miraculous.

Adrien stared at it in utter amazement. It was impossible. How on earth could _his father_ of all people have something so precious? So _dangerous?_ Without thinking, Adrien reached out his hand and lifted the Miraculous off the shelf. It was strangely warm for something that had been sitting unhandled in a cold safe.

“It was your mother’s,” Gabriel said, his voice making Adrien look up in surprise. Gabriel was watching him closely, his expression guarded and unreadable. “She left it behind when she… when she disappeared.”

“Where did she get this?” Adrien asked uncertainly. Did his father know of it’s true power? Had his _mother_ known? Was it really possible that his mother had been, like himself, a Miraculous wielder?

“Tibet,” Gabriel said. “In the same place I got my book of… inspiration.” Adrien glanced at the Compendium. Beside it lay a stack of travel documents he hadn’t noticed before, as well as a book on traveling through Tibet. “Apparently, it is an ancient Chinese artifact. One of a kind and very, _very_ valuable. It was one of your mother’s greatest treasures.”  

“But she didn’t take it with her when she… left?”

Gabriel pondered him. Adrien looked back at him searchingly. After a long moment, Gabriel sighed and held his hand out for the Miraculous.

Adrien hesitated. He knew that he should get the jewel back to Master Fu as soon as possible, restoring it to the safe care and protection of the Guardian. But he couldn’t just take it from his father. Finally, after what felt like a moment of eternity, Adrien released his hold on it, and Gabriel returned it to the safe.

Locking the door and repositioning the large painting it hid behind, Gabriel took a step back to look up into Adrien’s mother’s eyes. Adrien stood beside him, regarding the painting as well.

“When Emilie disappeared, it was the most painful day of my life,” Gabriel said suddenly. Adrien looked around at his father in astonishment; it had been years since he’d heard his mother’s name spoken out loud. “It was… as if she’d taken half of my heart, half of my very soul with her. I didn’t know where to go, what to do… I…” he paused, unable to make the words come to him.

Adrien hadn’t seen his father like this in years. It was like the cold and aloof demeanor had suddenly cracked, and Adrien could actually catch a glimpse of the man his father used to be. For that brief moment, he felt the urge to comfort his father in the same way he’d wished _anyone_ had comforted _him_ when he’d been in pain all those years ago. Reaching his hand up, he placed it hesitantly on his father’s shoulder.

“I’ve done everything in my power to… find her.” Gabriel continued. “To bring her back home, for both our sakes. But every time I get close to the answer, it’s _stolen away.”_ His hands balled into to fists as he said this, and suddenly the aching sadness was replaced with an incredible fury that caused Adrien to actually step back, flinching his hand away from his father as though he’d been burned. A strange energy hung in the air, a darkness that made Adrien feel like he was back inside one of his nightmares.

The screams of his mother echoed through his mind.

All at once, the atmosphere around his father had shifted, and any hint of emotion from what they had just talked about vanished. Gone was the father Adrien had spent so much of his life longing for. He was Monsieur Gabriel Agreste once again, as cold and rigid as the polished marble that filled the Agreste mansion.

“Enough of this, Adrien,” he said, his voice hard. “We have a party to attend.”

And with that, Gabriel swept out of his office, leaving Adrien frozen behind him in shock. After a moment, he shook his head and moved towards the doors as well, his mind racing.

His father had a Miraculous in his possession. The Miraculous had belonged to his mother, Emilie. He didn’t know if Gabriel was aware of its true power. He didn’t know if his mother was a wielder.

Adrien found Marinette waiting just inside the large entrance doors, looking unsure. When she spotted him, she smiled with relief.

“I didn’t really know what I was supposed to do,” she said, wrapping her arm through his. “Some people were moving into the banquette hall, some were staying outside, I dunno. Zacharias introduced me to a few of those lead designers your father was talking about, so that’s exciting! I was more nervous than I thought I’d be though. They said they would keep an eye on my work this year, like _that’s_ more pressure I need right now. Hey,” she paused her nervous rambling finally to look at him more closely. “You look even more stressed out than before. Like you’ve seen a ghost or something… Are you ok?”

“I… I don’t know,” he said, staring unseeingly out into the crowd of guests in the courtyard.

He felt like he didn’t know anything anymore. Of only one thing he was absolutely certain; he needed to consult Master Fu as soon as possible.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Two new chapters in one day?! Aw yeahh!!!
> 
> It's a shorter one (compared to my usual standards) but it's packed with a lot of things so there's that! I already had most of this written when I posted Ch 3 earlier, so I figure'd might as well just wrap it up ;) Super pumped to keep sharing this with you guys, it's only gonna get more intense and exciting from here!!!
> 
> :|:IMPORTANT UPDATE (11/11/2018):|:  
> Hello, dear readers!!! I can't even begin to express how sorry I am for these ridiculous hiatuses. I am putting this here now to let you know that I have NOT given up on this work. In fact I have a new system going where (as of right now) I've written out probably a good half of the rest of the story! My plan is to actually finish writing it in its entirety and go through the process of editing it as a whole (and this includes re-editing the chapters posted here now, and possibly adding more content to them). I just feel like it's unfair of me to only post finished chapters once every few months and then make you wait so long between them. SO! As a compromise, and to be kinder to you, I am putting this work on a minor OFFICIAL HIATUS until I get to the point where everything is done. Then, I will be able to post all the chapters at once, with intervals of only a few days between each one! 
> 
> Until then, please feel free to keep leaving comments, and message me any time you want updates! Thank you all, a million times over, for your patience and for bearing with me!!! xoxo


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